
Class F-39L 

Book 

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COPYRIGHT DEPOSnV 




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SOVEREIGNTY 

By DAN W. ROBERTS 

CAPTAIN COMPANY "D" of the TEXAS RANGERS 




WOOD PRINTING &. ENGRAVING CO. 

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS 

1914 



Copyright 1914 by 
Capt. Dan W. Roberts 



If 4 3 



JAN 13 !9I4 



CI.A3C31';4 



Biographical Sketch 

D. W. Roberts was born in the State of Mississippi, 
in Winston County, October 10th, 1841. His father, 
Alexander Roberts, came to Texas in 1836, and helped 
the Texans fight the battles of the Republic for nearly 
four years, being in many engagements with the 
enemy, the most noted of which was the Plum Creek 
fight, which has gone into the history of Texas. 

Soon after the Plum Creek fight, my mother pre- 
vailed on father to take his family to some place of 
safety, firmly believing that wholesale murder would 
be their fate: (Father's judgment was waived) and 
her love of family won her cause, and they went back 
to Mississippi in 1839. 

During their stay in Mississippi, I was born, mak- 
ing that State my native soil, but father's love for 
Texas had never subsided, and his turn came to per- 
suade mother back to Texas, where he joined his old 
comrades again in 1843. I was about two j^ears old 
when they returned to Texas. 

My father followed up the frontier, and I was 
reared, and almost rocked in the cradle of Texas war- 
fare. When I was a small boy, I developed some very 
peculiar traits of character, not peculiarly good, but 
rather strangely peculiar. 

We were fond of dwelling alone, to commune with 
Nature's beautiful work. 1 had my favorite pecan 
trees, and would conceal myself under them, to hear 
the crows murmur to each other, while they were 
gathering the splendid nuts. 



My father's recital of early Texas battles had im- 
bued me with the spirit, that those old Texans were 
the rightful lords of that grand and new republic, 
and that their heroism should be sustained, and when 
I grew to be a man, that I would devote my life to 
the cause that my father so loved. 

In my boyish dreams I was always in command 
of men. My education was limited to the common 
English branches. As I grew to manhood, I could see 
that war should not be our occupation, but the con- 
stant raids of savage foes upon Texas, gave us the 
field that our more youthful days had pictured for 
us. We were "put in command of men," and our 
stewardship will follow. Our work was more prepara- 
tory for civil government, consequently we were never 
a politician, but always adhered to democratic prin- 
ciples. 



Contents 



Organization 15 

The Deer Creek Fight 19 

Packsaddle Mountain Fight 29 

Enlistment and First Scout 33 

Fugitive List 39 

Lost Valley Fight 41 

Second Saline Fight 45 

''The Wind Up" 53 

Third Saline Fight 57 

Moved Camp to Las Moras 61 

The Staked Plains Fight 67 

Viewing Out a Road 77 

Captain Roberts Married 81 

The Mason County War 87 

Rio Grande Campaign 95 

On the March 105 

Fort Davis Scout 111 

The Potter Scout 117 

Waiting on the Courts 121 

Pegleg Stage Robbing 125 

Stealing Saddles 131 

Cattle Stealing 137 

Mavericks 141 

The Killing of Sam Bass 145 



Considering Results 153 

Fence Cutters 161 

Horrel War 165 

The Old Texas Rangers 171 

Adios Rangers 179 

Old Spanish Fort 185 

Old San Antonio Road 187 

A New Texas 189 



Introduction 



We set out in this writing to record the work of 
Company ''D", Frontier Battalion, not for any selfish 
consideration. But, being almost importuned by our 
real friends to do so, we thought we could tell what 
we reallj^ know to be true in a way that might spin 
out a thread strong enough to bind together an in- 
telligent idea of the needs of that service, how the ser- 
vice was performed, and at least a vision of the final 
disposition of the horrid Indian question. Our ego- 
tism doesn't lead us to say that Texas did it all; but 
our little part is richly treasured in the archives of 
our "native heath" — Texas. Our sorrows are there, 
also, in many a grave not even marked by human 
hands to show where our brave defenders met death — 
yielding the last sacrifice in defense of Texas. 

We challenge the world to produce a citizenship or 
soldiery more loyal to home and country. Our oldest 
citizenship were ''diamonds in the rough" and no 
polish has ever added to their intrinsic value. The 
great big warm hearts of their sons and daughters 
needed no psychologist to interpret their spirit 
groAvth. They were modestly, and innocently, great 
from birth. When "patent-leather civilization" over- 



12 Rangers and Sovereignty 

took them they were ill at ease to embrace its gilded 
charms ; but reassurance came to them in a knowledge 
that good society came from a good base. 

We shall abstain from politics, religion or law, only 
to give a definition of politics, offered by a statesman, 
who said: "Politics is anything pertaining to law." 
But from this we dissent, and offer a substitute: 
"Politics is anything for the betterment of our in- 
stitutions of government. ' ' Religion is the outgrowth 
of moral ethics, but Christianity is a different thing. 
Law is the executive branch of both politics and* 
Christianity, it rather seeks shelter under Christ's 
precedents. Some may say that these great questions 
have no analogy to the subject; but a great state, 
trying to operate a government under their power, 
must have a cause and justification. 

We had to meet a condition, not a law, of savage 
atrocity. We could not apply our law in revenge, 
which made our case clearly one in self defense. The 
State of Texas realizing this could only operate a 
force within state lines. The Rangers were her 
militia, as the name "Ranger" had no standing in 
law. It came to us more from tradition, when Texas 
was a republic, and is dear to us yet. The moral force 
of its meaning will never die in Texas. 

Texas found that the practical acquisition of her 
frontier furnished an asset to the state, which vastly 
augmented her wealth. The live-stock industry easily 



Rangers and Sovereignty 13 

copes with cotton, sugar and rice, on a basis of money 
value. Her fruits and cereals only supply home con- 
sumption. Her truck gardening is a big item in sup- 
plying all our early markets. And can we claim a 
modest little part in bringing about all this? We 
abide the answer from true Texans. 



Kangees and Sovereignty 15 



Organization 



After the war between the states, the first Demo- 
cratic Governor elected in Texas was Richard Coke. 
The citizens of Texas, realizing that the state was 
over-run with Indians and outlaws, following in the 
wake of war, found that the battles of its first great 
pioneers would have to be, in a measure, fought over 
again. Not for the independence of a republic, but, 
for the life and liberty of her people, guaranteed by 
the constitution, and compact of states. Consequent- 
ly, in May, 1874, Governor Coke recommended to the 
legislature, then in session, to authorize the raising 
and equipping of a battalion, of six full companies 
of Rangers, consisting of 75 men to each company, 
rank and file, to be placed on the Texas frontier, ex- 
tending from Jacksboro, in Jack County, to the Rio 
Grande River, bordering on Mexico a distance of 
600 miles, on the north and west of the interior of 
the state. 

That legislature was composed of the sterling men 
of the state, who didn't weigh money, with the lives 
of our people, and after passing the bill appropriat- 
ed $75,000.00 to put the Battalion into action as 
quickly as possible. The six companies of the Bat- 
talion were organized and officered as follows: On 



16 ^ Rangers and Sovereignty 

the extreme east of the line was Captain John Ikard. 
Then, coming west, was Captain Stevens, then Cap- 
tain Jeff. Malty, then Captain C. R. (Rufe Perry,} 
commanding Company D. Then came Captain Neal 
Caldwell and Captain Pat Dolan on the extreme 
west. The respective companies were distributed 
approximately 100 miles apart. Our Adjutant Gen- 
eral was Wm. Steele; our Major was John B. Jones. 
Our Quartermaster was Wm. M. Kenney. 

Major John B. Jones was the moving spirit of 
the field work and directed it almost entirely him- 
self. Major Jones was a man of great administra- 
tive and executive ability, and none of the Rangers 
could beat him to a real live scrap with the enemy. 
He was the right man in the right place. Major 
Jones detailed five men froin each company to serve 
as an escort with him in traveling from one com- 
pany to another, up and down the line of companies. 
That he endured hardships and hard fighting will 
be mentioned later. 

After we had been in the service about five months 
having had some fighting in the meantime, our 
Quartermaster informed Governor Coke that the ap- 
propriation, $75,000.00, would not maintain the six 
companies for two years, or until another legisla- 
ture could make further appropriation, the deficit 
being about one-half of the needed sum. Conse- 
quently, Governor Coke ordered a reduction of the 



Rangers and Sovereignty 17 

force to 40 men to each company, rank and file, 
which was done immediately. 

When the reduction of companies came Captain 
•'Rufe" Perry resigned as captain of Company D, 
and recommended Lieutenant Dan W. Roberts to takv^ 
command of the company. This was done over our 
First Lieutenant, W. "W. Ledbetter, who was a splen- 
did gentleman. Mr. Ledbetter feeling the sting a 
little quit the service. 

As I have only contemplated a record of the ser- 
vice of Company D, frontier battalion, we hope no 
officer or man of the batallion will think that we 
are not big enough to give equal justice to all. My 
purpose is to give a faithful record of what I know to 
be true, and I can only represent Company D backed 
by the archives of the state. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 19 



The Deer Creek Fight 

The first Indian fight in which I took part oc- 
curred in August, 1873, which was a little more than 
a year prior to the time the legislature passed the 
bill providing for the battalion of Rangers to patrol 
and protect the immense district which might prop- 
erly be called the outposts of advanced civilization. 

The battle was between a small posse of citizens 
of Round Mountain and a band of marauding In- 
dians which had committed a horrible murder in that 
neighborhood just a few days before. This butchery 
was only one of the many which was being perpe- 
trated from day to day along that long stretch of 
lonely, unprotected border, and afforded convincing 
proof that some sort of police protection was im- 
peratively needed. 

The victims of the Indians were Mr. and Mrs. 
Thomas Phelps, who lived on their ranch near Cy- 
press Creek some three miles to the south of Round 
Mountain, in Blanco County. Round Mountain was 
a small settlement which was only about fifty miles 
distant from Austin. The grave dangers and deadly 
perils which menaced the pioneers will be understood 
all the more readily when it is shown that the In- 
dians carried on their merciless warfare of robbery, 



20 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

arson and murder within fifty miles of the capital 
of the state. 

Mr. and Mrs. Phelps left their home and walked 
do^^Ti on Cypress creek to enjoy a few hour's fishing. 
Mrs. White, who was Mrs. Phelps' mother, was left 
at home to take care of the children. A short while 
after Mr. and Mrs. Phelps left the house Mrs. White 
heard the firing of guns in the direction of the creek. 
She knew only too well the terrible significance of 
these sounds. A negro boy scared almost out af his 
wits, hastened to the house of the nearest neighbor 
and gave the alarm. The ''pony" telephone rapidly 
spread the report and friends hurried to the scene 
of the killing. The bodies of Mr. and Mrs. Phelps 
were found on the bank of the creek, where they had 
been murdered and scalped. The Indians then had 
a start of several hours, which was too big a lead 
to overcome, even if an armed posse had been ready to 
take the trail. 

On the following Sunday several of the young 
men of the neighborhood gathered at the home of my 
father, Alexander (Buck) Roberts. Repairing to the 
shade of a little grove nearby, we held a council of 
war. The situation was too plain to admit of a misun- 
derstanding. The issue involved a matter of life and 
death and we faced it fairly and squarely. The one 
resolution introduced and unanimously carried was 
that the next time the Indians came into our neigh- 
borhood, we would follow and fight. There was noth- 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 21 

ing heroic in our resolution ; on the contrary, we were 
simply governed by the law of self-preservation. If 
we remained at home and permitted the Indians to 
continue unmolested in their raids, there was a strong 
probability that, family by family, nearly all of us 
would be butchered; while if we engaged them in 
battle there was at least a fighting chance that we 
could ''get" some of them. We could do no worse 
than be killed in the fight and that was a better pros- 
pect than being butchered as we slept. 

We did not have to wait long after the council of 
war was held. Within just a few days the report 
was received that the Indians were in the country 
to the north of us and were moving south. Again 
the ''pony" telephone was put in operation and the 
news carried from house to house. 

There were only six of us who rode out from Round 
Mountain to find the trail and run down the Indian 
band, whose number we had no means of knowing. 
In the party were Thomas Bird, Joe Bird, John 0. 
Biggs, Stanton Jolly, George T. Roberts (my 
brother), and myself. We struck the trail on Hick- 
ory Creek, about ten miles from Round Mountain. 
A short time after we struck the trail we Avere over- 
taken and joined by Captain James Ingram, William 
Ingram, Frank Waldrip and "Cam" Davidson. This 
unexpected reinforcement brought our squad up to 
a fighting strength of ten men. 

All of us were young men, but we were seasoned 



22 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

plainsmen inured to the hardships of life on the fron- 
tier. We knew how to ride hard and shoot straight. 
The equipment of arms of our squad was very poor, 
probably inferior to the equipment of the Indians. 
I remember that several of the boys had only six- 
shooters and they were not very good ones. I had 
an old Spencer saddle-gun which had been in the 
army service. It was a big calibre rifle, with a mag- 
azine holding seven shells, and perhaps the best gun 
in the squad. 

On the trail we found where the Indians had killed 
two beeves and carried away practically all of the 
meat. The big trail of horses tended to confirm our 
suspicion that we were trailing a big band. We 
learned later that every horse had a rider. 

We followed the trail at a gallop when the lay of the 
ground made that speed possible. After following the 
trail for fifteen miles we saw an Indian run down 
from the top of a little hill, from which vantage point 
he had been spying over the back trail. He was 
about a quarter of a mile away when we sighted him- 
We knew that the band must be near and that the 
fight was about to begin. Putting our horses into 
a dead run we moved forward and around the little 
hill. 

As we came within range they opened fire and our 
answering volley was fired before we dismounted. 
With cunning and strategy they had chosen well the 
place to be overtaken. As we swept into plain view 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 23 

and into the range of their guns we realized that 
every natural advantage was theirs, but no matter 
how great the handicap we were there to fight. They 
were entrenched in a little draw or shallow ravine to 
the right of the hill and far enough distant from the 
hill to prevent us from using that eminence for a 
breastwork. Our only means of attack was in the open, 
from the front. To add to their advantage there was 
a scrub growth of Spanish oak on each side of the 
ravine. On the further side of the ravine their horses 
were tied. 

The mare that I was riding was young and badly 
tired, which left me considerably in the rear when 
the first volley was fired. When I reached the squad 
I found that my brother had been wounded in the 
first exchange of shots. A big bullet had struck 
him on the right side of the face, grazing the cheeli 
bone just under the eye, passing through the nose 
and grazing the left cheek bone as it passed out. 
An inch higher and further in would have resulted in 
instant death. I asked Stanton Jolly to move George 
out of range and take care of him. This reduced our 
fighting force to eight men. 

We continued to pepper each other as best we 
could, the final result in doubt from the very begin- 
ning. We could not even see when our bullets were 
finding lodging in the targets. While the others 
held their ground directly in front, I edged around 
to the left, and finally reached the side of the gully. 



24 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

From this point I could fire down the gully and as 
long as I could hold the position, put the Indians 
under a sort of cross-fire. I had a much better view 
and could do more effective work from this position. 
When an Indian would rise from behind the brush 
to shoot at me, the boys in front had a better shot 
at him, and when he exposed himself to shoot at the 
squad, my time came to shoot. 

The bullets struck all around me, but I used the 
Indian tactics, jumping from one side to another of 
the guUey, with my gun always in position to take 
advantage of an opening for a fair shot. I suspect 
I must have grown a little bit careless when there was 
a momentary lull in the firing. I was standing, part- 
ly exposed, with my gun in position, when a big bullet 
struck me in the left thigh, missing the bone and pass- 
ing entirely through my limb. The shot did not knock 
me down, but the blood spouted so freely that I 
thought the main artery had been severed. By this 
time William Ingram had worked his way around and 
was firing on the Indians from a short distance from 
me. I called to him that I had been shot and feared 
I was mortally wounded, but urged him not to come 
to me. I continued to stand with my gun in position 
to shoot. 

"Bill" Ingram was a big, heavy-set, good natured 
boy, somewhat easy going, but he had the heart of a 
lion. It was useless to tell him to avoid danger when 
a comrade had been shot and needed his services. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 25 

Disregarding the fire of the Indians, he came directly 
to me. Finding me helpless and in a condition ap- 
parently serious, he went out to the open and brought 
back his horse. Lifting me into the saddle he led 
the horse out through the shower of bullets. 

My wound was bleeding so freely and I was suffer- 
ing so much for water that the boys realized that they 
must get me away quickly. We found water within 
a mile of the scene of the fight, and from there I was 
carried to Johnson's ranch, about two miles further 
on. The only injuries sustained by our squad were 
the two slight wounds on Joe Bird, who had both 
shoulders grazed by bullets. Several of the horses 
were slightly wounded. 

After carrying George and myself to Johnson's 
ranch where we could have attention, one of the boys 
rode over and reported the fight to Captain Rufe 
Perry, who lived half a mile away. Hastily summon- 
ing all the men available he went at once to the battle 
ground, hoping to resume the fight. He found that 
the Indians had departed as soon as we ceased firing 
and gave up the fight. He took the trail westward 
and followed it some distance, but found that the band 
had a long start that it would be impossible to over- 
take them before night. Four or five of their horses 
had been left dead on the battle ground. Captain 
Perry found many blood spots on the trail where the 
dead and wounded had been laid on the ground. 

These Indians were trailed out of the country by 



26 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

other parties. They numbered twenty-seven warriors, 
so I was informed by parties who saw them come in. 
One of the parties which trailed them out reported 
finding the graves of four of the braves who had 
been consigned to the happy hunting ground as the 
result of the fight with us. 

While I lay convalescing, Hon. H. C. King, State 
Senator came to pay me a visit. He was deeply stirred 
by the report of the fight. He was one of the type of 
man made famous by Kipling, with plenty of red 
blood in his veins. He went from our home direct to 
Austin, where the legislature was then in session, 
and introduced a bill which provided for a gun to 
be given to each one of us who participated in the 
fight, as a testimonial of the State's appreciation of 
the services we tried to render. The guns awarded 
were repeating Winchesters of the model of 1873, 
which had just been perfected and put on the market. 
I have my gun yet, and I hardly need to add that it 
is among the most treasured of all my possessions. 

The oftener I think of the Deer Creek fight, the 
greater is my wonder that all of us were not killed. 
We were outnumbered by more than three to one, had 
arms that were inferior to the enemy 's and were com- 
pelled to fight in the open, at close range, while the 
Indians had shelter. I can account for the miracle of 
our escape only by believing that it was an act of 
Providence. 
/ Captain Rufe Perry, who is mentioned in this chap- 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 27 

ter, was the first commander of Company ' ' D " of the 
Texas Rangers, when the battalion was organized a 
year afterward. Of those who were in the Deer Creek 
fight, only three other than myself are alive today, 
so far as I can learn. "Bill' Ingram lives in 
Schleicher County, Texas ; Joe Bird is still in or near 
Round Mountain, and John 0. Biggs is a resident of 
Silver Cit}^, New Mexico. 



Rangers and Soveeeigntt. 29 



Packsaddle Mountain Fight 

Being almost coincident with our Deer Creek fight, 
we copy Mr. James R. Moss' account of the Packsad- 
dle Mountain fight. The Moss brothers, and the 
Roberts brothers were a team that always pulled to- 
gether, and we never knew a Moss to balk. 

"On the 4th day of August, 1873, a party of red- 
skins supposed to be Comanches, made a raid into 
Llano County, and stole a lot of horses, with which 
they were making their escape out of the country, 
when a company of eight, Dever Harrington, Robert 
Brown, Eli Lloyd, Arch Martin, Pink Ayres and the 
Moss brothers, James R., William and Stephen D., 
was organized and started in pursuit. After follow- 
ing the trail perhaps a distance of forty miles, the 
Rangers discovered the Indians about noon on the fol- 
lowing day in camp on top of Packsaddle Mountain. 
Concealing their movements the pursuers carefully 
reconnoitered the situation and discovered that the 
redskins had made only a temporary halt to rest and 
refresh themselves. They had passed over an open 
space about forty yards in width covered with grass 
and had pitched their camp on the edge of the bluff 
beyond, leaving their stock in the glade to graze. The 
bluff where they halted was skirted below with a 



30 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

sparse growth of stunted trees, which, with some 
scrubby bushes growing adjacent afforded them a 
good camping ground. Some of the Indians had lain 
down in the bushes to rest, while others were roasting 
meat over a stick fire and eating. It was agreed 
among the Rangers that they would charge across the 
glade on horseback and put themselves between the 
Indians and their horses, then dismount and open fire. 
The charge was made and all dismounted before fir- 
ing, except William Moss, who fired two shots from 
his horse. Though surprised the Indians gathered 
their guns and returned the fire, forming as they did 
so, in a kind of battle line, in which manner they made 
two separate cliarges, evidently intending, if possible, 
to reach their horses. But they were repulsed each 
time, and a third line was broken up before they 
got well out of the timber, under cover of which it was 
formed. One buck, bolder than the rest, advanced 
alone at some distance to the right of the others, and 
without firing his gun, which, hoAvever, he held grasp- 
ed in an upright position, seemed determined to make 
his way to the horses. He came to within a few feet 
of the Rangers, some of them firing at him, when 
suddenly he turned and retreating to the edge of the 
timber, fell forward stone dead, but, as was afterward 
found, still tightly grasping his gun. About this 
time three or four of the Indians started up a chant 
and began to file off under the bluff, the others fol- 
lowed suit, and almost in a twinkling, nothing more 



Rangers and Sovereignty 31 

was seen of them. On inspecting the battle ground 
the Rangers found three bodies. Four of their num- 
ber were more or less hurt, William Moss being shot 
in the right arm and shoulder, the ball ranging 
through the breast and coming out on the left side. 
Arch Martin shot in the left groin; Eli Lloyd three 
slight wounds in the arms, and Pink Ayers, two balls 
in the hips. It was estimated that there were twenty 
Indians, seventeen bucks, two squaws and a boy. All 
of the stock which these Indians had, twenty head, 
together with some of their firearms, saddles and 
accoutrements, fell into the hands of the Rangers. 
None of the wounds sustained by the pursuers proved 
serious, except those of William Moss; he has always 
suffered more or less with his. ' ' 



Rangers and Sovereignty 33 



Enlistment and First Scout 

My connection with the Ranger Battalion was 
accidental. That is true at least to the extent that 
I made no application to enlist in the service. 

In May, 1874, I made all my plans and arrange- 
ments to remove to the Territory of New Mexico, to 
engage in business. This was just at the time that 
the Battalion was being organized. I had previously 
spent some time in the territory and was favorably 
impressed with the business prospects. I had gone 
so far with my arrangements as to write a notice of 
my plans to the young lady who has been Mrs. Rob- 
erts for a great many years. 

Just before I made the start I received a brief letter 
from Captain Rufe Perry, who had been commissioned 
a captain and placed in command of Company ''D". 
The letter read as follows : ' ' Meet me in Austin May 
10th." I had not the remotest idea of what he de- 
sired, but the letter had an imperative ring, so I 
went to Austin. A few minutes after my arrival at 
the Capitol, I met Captain Perry on Congress Avenue 
as he was coming down from the capitol building. 
After we had exchanged greetings, he handed me a 
document without making any comment. The docu- 
ment was a commission as second lieutenant that had 



34 Rangers and Sovereignty 

been signed a few minutes before by Governor Rich- 
ard Coke. With the remark ' ' I guess you've got me, ' ' 
I accepted the commission and became one of the 
charter members of Company ^'D" of the Ranger 
Battalion. I returned home for my equipment and 
joined the company on its march for the frontier. 

Captain Perry, as the commander of a company 
which was to remain on the frontier, naturally select- 
ed some of the members of the company from the men 
whom he knew personally. It was necessary to have 
men who were more or less acquainted with life on the 
border and accustomed to the hardships. He and I 
had been personal friends for many years and had 
had scout service together. Our respective families 
had lived in the same district and been friends for a 
long time. I write this paragraph as an explanation 
of his reason for offering me a commission as a 
lieutenant in his company. 

In August of the same year, Captain Perry ordered 
a scout made to the south of camp to look for Indian 
signs. The company was then in camp on the San 
Saba River, twenty miles below Fort McKavett. Eight 
men were detailed for the scout, with myself in com- 
mand. At the end of the first day's march we camp- 
ed near the headwaters of the Little Saline Creek, 
where we found a spring of good water. 

George Bird was sent out to kill a deer. Six of the 
other members were sent out to graze the horses about 
a quarter of a mile from the camp. Corporal Matt. 



Rangers and Sovereignty 35 

Murphy was in charge of the horse guard. Murphy 
was from Mobile and was dubbed "Mobile Register". 
Notwithstanding the fun we had with him, he was 
a game, good fellow. 

George Bird returned to camp just at sundown. He 
was laying down his gun when firing commenced out 
at the horses. The Indian war-cry left no doubt as 
to the meaning of the shots. 

George Bird seized his gun and sprinted for the 
horses. I stayed right with him. Reaching the horses, 
we saw that the Indians had given up the fight and 
fled, after staying for only two exchanges of shots. 
They had thought to play the role of surprise party, 
but finding the small squad ready and willing for a 
fight, quickly decided that discretion was the better 
part of valor and took to flight. The Rangers loosen- 
ed hobbles, mounted bareback and rode pell-mell to 
camp for saddles. We returned to the place where 
we had seen them last and followed in their wake 
until dark. In the hurried departure they dropped 
several blankets and trinkets. One hat which we 
found Avill be referred to in a subsequent chapter. 

We took the trail early next morning and followed 
for some thirty miles. The men found evidences which 
they thought indicated that we had wounded several 
of the Indians in the fight the night before. Late 
in the evening we foiuid the tracks diverging in many 
directions. Scattering was an old trick^ which tliey 
used when closely pursued. Breaking into very small 



36 Rangers and Sovereignty 

squads, they would agree upon a meeting place gen- 
erally remote and always in some direction other than 
the one they had been traveling. After some study of 
the situation we "called the turn". Our guess was 
that they would double back and meet somewhere near 
the point where they made the attack. That this guess 
hit the mark will be shown in a chapter reporting the 
fight which we had with them a few days later. The 
band was composed of Comanches, about twelve in 
number. 

We returned to camp, but we waited in vain for 
them to come within sight or hearing. 

The cunning of the Indians is well illustrated in 
the point of our camp which they selected to attack. 
Almost invariably they went for the horses first. 
They seemed to have a mania for stealing horses, even 
when they did not need them. When they were not 
bent upon stealing, they delighted in stampeding the 
horses, leaving the campers a-foot. 

The squads and companies of Rangers were com- 
pelled to use -every precaution to prevent the Indians 
from stampeding the horses. Captain Perry, of Com- 
pany ''D" introduced the custom of using hobbles 
and side lines. The hobbles were short chains, with 
a heavy leather strap at each end and fastened to the 
horses fore feet; the side lines fastening into one of 
the straps of the hobbles and extending backward 
and fastening to the hind foot. Horses so secured 
could not possibly move faster than a walk and the 
Indians never could drive them away from us. 



Rangers and Sovereignty 37 

One of my rightly enforced regulations was to send 
all the men of the horse guard out with the horses. 
And there they stayed. They could arrange their 
reliefs so as not to work any hardships, but they were 
required to remain within shooting distance of the 
horses. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 39 



Fugitive List 



After we had been in the service about four months 
we found that we would be compelled to assist civil 
officers in the enforcement of law on the frontier. 
Consequently, Major Jones conceived the idea of some 
fine constructive work in procuring a list from each 
county in the state of their criminals, many of whom 
had fled to the frontier to hide from the law. This, 
all added up, made a considerable book. A copy of 
this book was furnished to each company of the Bat- 
talion. Several times we found our "neighbors" 
were wanted on ' ' important business ' ' in the counties 
they hailed from. A very accurate description was 
given of men charged with crime, and that was what 
caught them oftener than names. Every visible scar, 
or any peculiar movement, or any peculiarity of 
speech; taking in the color of the hair, height, age, 
and color of the eyes were all given. My men got so 
thoroughly trained by observance that a man's name 
only counted for a starter for his true identity. They 
all studied the Fugitive List more than the Bible, but 
always observed the Bible teaching : ' ' Thou shalt not 
steal or commit murder." 

Our work was constant; and when we were after 
Indians there were generally enough men in camp 



40 Rangers and Sovereignty 

to assist the civil officers in making arrests of crimi- 
nals. Some of the sheriffs became a little lazy and 
depended on the Rangers a little too much, while 
others ^ere jealous of the Rangers in getting to their 
men first. The Ranger posse was always ready and 
day and night was their limit on time. The courts did 
not discourage the civil officers, but the Rangers were 
their certain dependance. This was kept subrosa by 
the legal fraternity. 

All our district judges sustained the Ranger work, 
as they did nothing except what was advised by the 
law branch of the state. We generally turned over 
prisoners to the sheriffs, unless it was some bad 
hombre that needed a safer jail than the frontier 
counties had. The Rangers were under no bond in 
doing this work, but each one of them was virtually 
commissioned by the Governor of the state, by acting 
under his orders, through officers he had commission- 
ed to do the work. 

All the state officers, from Governor down, were our 
strong friends and supporters. Our success was their 
success and we pulled together like brothers. We 
really believe that their pride in the work was as great 
as that of the man who performed it. 




MAJOR JOHN B. JONES 



Rangers and Sovereignty 41 



Lost Valley Fight 

This chapter marks a departure from the general 
rule which is followed throughout the remainder of 
this little book, in that the facts here set down are 
not taken from my experiences, nor did they come 
under my observation. My reason for publishing 
this chapter is that the story of the fight illustrates 
exceptionally well the gallantry and courage of Major 
John B. Jones, who was the commander and guiding 
spirit of the Battalion of Rangers. 

The report which is given was taken from an article 
written for the El Paso Morning Times by Sergeant 
J. B. Gillette, who was a member of Company ''D'\ 
I know from many verbal reports that Sergeant Gil- 
lette's story is correct, and therefore have no hesi- 
tancy in quoting therefrom. His story is as follows: 

"Major Jones had made one trip along the line of 
his companies to the extreme eastern end, where Cap- 
tain Ikard's company was stationed. On the return 
trip he camped for the night on the lower edge of 
Lost Valley, in Jack County. Early on the next 
morning, a small band of Indians raided Loving's 
ranch and stole a bunch of horses. The ranchmen 
being aware of Major Jones' presence hurried to his 
camp and reported the raid and theft. 



42 Rangers and Sovereignty 

This was just what the Major wanted. Here was 
a fresh Indian trail, within a few miles of his camp. 
He took with him his entire escort of 30 men, picked 
up the trail and followed it rapidly. From the signs, 
there appeared to be 10 or 12 Indians in the party, 
and as the trail was only a few hours old, the mounts 
of his command fresh and his men eager for fight, 
they pushed on at a full gallop, not dreaming that old 
Lone Wolf, a celebrated Kiowa chief, with 250 war- 
riors, was concealed in a little mott of timber, in the 
upper edge of Lost Valley, eagerly watching the ap- 
proach of the Rangers. As Major Jones hurried on, 
all of a sudden he found himself completely surround- 
ed by this fierce band of savages. The Kiowas, and 
Comanches, are given up to be the best riders, and 
most expert horsemen of any Indians on the American 
Continent. 

Those Indians, on their gaily bedecked ponies, cir- 
cled around and around this command of 30 men, 
pouring in a perfect fusilade of bullets, being armed 
with the most improved rifles. Major Jones seeing 
that it would be impossible to escape, steadied his men, 
the best he could. Many of the Rangers never having 
been under fire before, became somewhat panicky, and 
it is said, that it was all Major Jones could do, to 
keep them from trying to break through the Indian 
line, which would have caused the entire command 
to have been massacred. The Rangers were quickly 
dismounted and took shelter in a small ravine. The 



Rangers and Sovereignty 43 

horses that could not be protected by shelter were tied 
in a small pecan mott near at hand. The Indians 
circled repeatedly around the Rangers and made re- 
peated efforts to rout them, but, the "boys" had be- 
come steady now, and met each charge of the Indians 
with a well directed fire. And many a brave warrior 
was unhorsed and killed. Old Lone Wolf, in person, 
made a ''dare devil" charge, to show his prowess, but 
he met with a bullet from Johnny Holmes^' rifle, which 
took his horse from under him. From Johnny Holmes ' 
delicate appearance, and his Chesterfield manners, 
you would not think there was a ''man of steel," at 
the breech of his rifle. Johnny was enlisted in Com- 
pany "D". 

Lone Wolf seeing that he could not dislodge the 
Rangers, drew off, and with a few long range buffalo 
guns turned his attention to Major Jones' horses. He 
shot down and killed every horse that was exposed, 
18 head in all. They had now been fighting most of 
the day, and the Rangers wxre running short of am- 
munition. One of the men, Charles Glass, having a 
fine race mare, told the Major that he believed he 
could break through the Indians, and carry the news 
to Jacksboro, where they could get relief. The Major 
opposed this, but Glass insisted. The Rangers were 
without water, and their situation becoming critical. 
Finally, Glass was allowed to make the attempt. His 
mare had been sheltered by the ravine. He readjusted 
his saddle, and as he tightened the cinches, it was 



44 Rangers and Sovereignty 

noticed that his hands trembled like an aspen leaf. 
Yet, he was clear grit, and when all was ready, he pull- 
ed his hat tight down over his eyes, mounted, dug his 
spurs deep into the sides of his mare, and at one bound 
was out of the ditch, running at full speed for the 
open country. The boys gave him a military salute 
as he left. Old Lone Wolf was too cunning to be 
caught napping, and at once some of his best mounted 
warriors were sent in pursuit. Not having to run so 
far, they quickly closed in on Glass, and he and his 
mare were shot down, and killed, before he had gone 
600 yards. Thus was the first blood of the Battalion 
spilled. 

''But many brave Rangers have gone to their last 
reward since then. The Rangers attempted to protect 
Glass the best they could, in his flight, and Lee Corn, 
one of the best Rangers that served in the early days, 
exposed himself a little too much, and was hit by a 
large rifle ball, in the right elbow, the bullet shattering 
the bone, and coming out at the wrist. As night came 
on, it was seen, that the Indians were preparing to 
leave, and by dark, they were all gone. Major Jones 
came out and marched back to his camp of the morn- 
ing, with the most of his men on foot. As soon as the 
Major could remount his men, he continued his march 
westward, along the line of companies. 



Rangers and Sovereignty 45 



With Forces Even 

(SECOND SALINE FIGHT) 

A few days had elapsed after the skirmish on Saline 
Creek, when Major Jones reached Company "D", 
encamped on Elm Creek near its junction with the 
San Saba River, Menard County. The Major struck 
camp within 200 yards of Company ''D" and the 
''boys" that were on the escort detail were ''home 
again ' '. They told us all about the Lost Valley Fight. 

Next morning Major Jones' escort were all saddled 
and ready to mount, when two men whom Captain 
Perry had sent up Elm Creek to get a beef came 
"sailing" into their camp and informed the Major 
that Indians had attacked them about five miles from 
camip. One of them continued on a dead run to Com- 
pany "D" camp and told me what had occurred. 
Captain Perry was up at the Major's camp, and I did 
not wait for any orders from superior officers, but 
told the man to go "flying" to the horse herd and tell 
the horse guard to get the horses to camp as quickly as 
it could be done. In the meantime, I detailed a squad 
of nine men to go with me. John Staggs, a 3^oung man 
who lived in IMenard County, was in our camp at the 
time and accompanied the detail. He was armed and 
took an active part in the fight which followed. 



46 Rangers and Sovereignty 

Major Jones' escort had moved out, with a man to 
show them the trail, and were half an hour ahead of 
me. As soon as we could saddle our horses we mounted 
and struck a gallop, taking a course a little south of 
the direction the escort had taken. I had flankers out 
on each side, so that we could not run over the trail 
without seeing it. We kept this speed for a distance of 
about eight miles when we came in sight of men riding 
briskly to the south, and near the head of Saline Creek. 
I thought we had sighted the Indians, but when I got 
nearer I saw that it was the escort, under command 
of Lieutenant Best, and on the trail of the Indians. 
I thought they were going a little too slow, as the 
Indians would soon reach a shelter of thickets and 
timber unknown to Lieutenant Best. Since Lieutenant 
Best was my superior officer, I put my wits to work 
quickly, to master the situation. He had two men 
ahead of him trailing the Indians, but I thought them 
too slow a "fuse" to fire in time. I rode up to the 
side of Lieutenant Best and asked him if I might assist 
those men in trailing, to which he replied "Certainly, 
do so". Then I had my cue. I lost no time in getting 
to them and struck a gallop on the trail. I knew what 
would follow and looked back and saw my men com- 
ing after me like stampeded cattle. I have never been 
quite able to justify my rude conduct toward a super- 
ior officer, but I knew something had to be done 
quickly. The clatter of hoofs was so fast that escort 
did not know whether they were on the Indian trail 
or not. 



Rangers and Sovereignty 47 

The trail went down a tributary of the Saline about 
two miles and turned abruptl}^ up another tributary 
of the same stream, making a V, and leading back 
northwest to the prairie again. Within two miles of 
their turn, I came in sight of them. They were riding 
leisurely and saw us coming about the time we 
discovered them, but did not attempt to run. I saw 
they were going to give us a fight. I had time to talk 
my men down into perfect calmness. I impressed 
upon them not to over shoot the enemy, but rather to 
aim low and kill the horses in preference to missing 
entirely. 

When we reached nearly within firing distance of 
them, their commander was riding with their rear file 
and quickly gave his horse a cut and raced to the head 
of the column. Facing the men about, left into line, 
they were spaced at proper intervals. It was as pretty 
a military movement as I ever saw. At that moment 
I broke column left into line and took intervals, but 
did not check my speed. 

They fired on us, but I did not return the fire, but 
kept on the charge until we were in easy pistol shot 
of them, when I ordered a halt and dismounted. They 
expected us to charge into them, as that is their favor- 
ite way of fighting, horseback. 

Our respective positions threw their commander 
on the right of his men and myself on the left of mine. 
I did not dismount myself, and seeing the Indian com- 
mander make a movement toward me, I met him half 



48 Rangers and Sovereignty 

way, but before we got together he shot my horse in 
the shoulder, and thinking my horse might fall and 
catch me under him, I jumped clear of the saddle to 
the ground. Just at that moment he jumped off his 
horse and we came together on foot. He tried his 
''war dance" on me to draw my fire, but I held my 
gun on him until he would settle down so I would not 
miss him. Seeing that his tactics would not work with 
me, he tried to get a little further from me. In my 
eagerness to ' ' fix ' ' him I did fire and missed him, but 
before he could straighten for position to shoot, I put 
a bullet in the right place. Corporal Thurlow Weed, 
seeing I was in a tight place, was the first man to get 
to me. There was another Indian close to me, shooting 
at me with the same kind of a gun that I was using. 
I pointed him out to Weed and he came down upon his 
knee with his rifle in deadly aim, as though he was 
shooting for beef, and at the fire of his gun the Indian 
sprang into the air and flattened out, face foremost. 
The Indians seeing this, and that their commander 
was gone, showed signs of retreat and I ''yelled" to 
my men to charge them. 

Then the race began. My poor old horse stood 
trembling, close to me, and I examined his wound has- 
tily and saw that the ball had struck pretty high up 
in the shoulder, and thought he might carry me a 
little further, so I mounted to follow the chase. My 
horse staggered off with me a short distance and 
gradually recovered until within a short distance 



Eangers and Sovereignty 49 

further he was at his best speed again ; within one mile 
I was in the lead again. Private George Bryant was 
riding the shabbiest looking horse in the company, 
but he had the blood of a " stayer ' ' and he kept by my 
side until we reached gunshot of the two rear Indians, 
both riding one horse. Bryant checked up enough to 
steady himself and fired at them, striking the hind 
rider in the back of his head, which needs no further 
explanation. The front rider still plied his quirt, 
but his horse was failing and I soon got to him. He 
jumped off his horse and threw up his hands in sur- 
render, telling me in Spanish that he was a friend. 
Notwithstanding I had sworn ' ' vengeance ' ' and sworn 
that a Comanche could not surrender to me, this fellow, 
standing before me in human shape, begging for his 
life, was more than I could stand. I took his arms 
and held him there until help came to me. Thur- 
lor Weed was one of the first men to me again. I 
hastily left the Indian in Weed's charge, telling him 
to let no one hurt him. I resumed the chase quickly, 
having several men with me then. (But before I pro- 
ceed further, I will say that this Corporal Thurlow 
Weed was a nephew of the noted Thurlow Weed of 
New York.) 

Within two miles further we were up again and ex- 
changing "hot compliments" with them. We made 
two more ''good Indians" in that round. Our horses 
being exhausted, and my horse having cooled a little 
by the check, could go no further. Just at this junc- 



50 Rangers and Sovereignty 

ture, Lieutenant Best, with two men got to us, and 
the Indians being faintly in sight yet, he struck the 
''dead run" for them. 

To camp, about 15 miles distant was our next move. 
I mounted a horse, and with his owner up behind me 
we rode ''double" into camp. Two men stayed with 
my horse and succeeded in getting him to camp late 
that night. My horse lived and did good service after- 
ward. 

When we arrived at camp, Weed was there with his 
Indian, and had him at a big bright guard fire. I will 
never forget how that poor devil looked — just as 
though he thought that fire had been made to cremate 
him. Now to account for the hat taken in the first 
skirmish. It was shown to the Indian and he claimed 
it and put on his head. 

We will now follow Lieut. Best to the wind-up of 
the day. After a run of three or four miles, he reached 
gunshot of them again, and shots were exchang- 
ed until the Indians reached a safe cover, in a place 
that they had evidently been making for. It was a 
short canyon, emptying into Las Moras Creek, and 
at its head it shelved under, making a big space they 
could take their horses under, and no approach to it 
except the way they went into it. So Lieutenant Best 
would edge around until he could see under the shelv- 
ing rocks and give them a fire occasionally, but prob- 
ably with no effect. He, however, had wounded one 
or two of them before they reached this place. Dark 



Eangers and Sovereignty 51 

coming on, Lieutenant Best would not give it up. He 
sent a man to Menardville, about eight miles away, for 
help. He and one man stayed there to watch as best 
they could. And near daylight, next morning, his 
succor came. But the danger of the Indians having 
fortified their position so as to make attack deadly 
from the outside they waited until good daylight to 
make it. They ventured cautiously until they saw the 
Indians had escaped. 



Rangers and Sovereignty 53 



"The Wind Up" 

Now we will trace this band of Indians to a finish. 
General McKinzey, commanding the 4th Cavalry, 
United States Army, had made a scout to near the 
headwaters of the Clear fork of the Brazos River, 
and had encountered nearly the whole tribe of the 
Comanche Indians, in which he used them up pretty 
badly. But, having only the 4th Cavalry with him, 
his fight had just begun. They rallied and pursued 
him for several days, making their attacks at night. 

General McKinzey had captured the greater number 
of their horses in the first engagement, and that fact 
caused them to be more persistent. He also had some 
prisoners. The Indians tried to stampede the horses 
at night. McKinzey was a "born fighter" and the 
4th Cavalry stood for anything he would undertake. 
Seeing his men and horses were becoming exhausted, 
he rounded up the Indian horses and had them shot 
down in a pile. Then he resumed his march toward 
Fort iMcKavett on the head of the San Saba River. 

When his command reached the Concho River, com- 
ing south, they spied two Indians coming to meet them. 
It was open prairie and their escape was impossible, 
so they ' ' squared themselves ' ' to fight the whole regi- 
ment. But the fight didn't last long, with no casual- 



54 Rangers and Sovereignty 

ties except to "plant" two more of them. These two 
Indians connect General McKinzey's scout with my 
accounting for the band we were first in pursuit of. 
As the direction they had taken and the time to make 
the distance was so perfectly coincident that I know 
they were two of the Indians that escaped from Lieu- 
tenant Best on the Las Moras. 

There was an Englishman by the name of Kemp, 
who had belonged to Company ''D" of the Frontier 
Battalion, who had gone to Fort Sill and was on the 
watch of movements of the good Indians on that Res- 
ervation. Some time had elapsed when a lone Indian 
came into Fort Sill. Mr. Kemp found that this Indian 
was one of the band we had been after, and secured 
his picture, sent it back to the "boys" in camp, say- 
ing: "This is the only one of them that got back". 

We will now follow the captive Indian to his end. 
Next morning after the fight, Captain Perry ordered 
a squad to take him to Austin and turn him over to the 
Governor of the state. He was put on a pack mule, 
his feet fastened together under the mule, so that he 
could not jump off in passing through brushy places 
and make his escape. He could ride comfortably. 
When he was fastened in that manner, again he looked 
like he thought it was "goodbye John" with him. 
The guard landed him in Austin safely. Governor 
Coke said he was a state 's prisoner, but the expense of 
keeping him did not belong to any one county and he 
sent him to the state prison at Huntsville. He was 



Rangers and Sovereignty 55 

not required to work and only held there for safe 
keeping. He found company there in the person of 
old Santana, who was sent there for some horrible 
murders on our frontier. The old chief recognized 
him readily and said he was 23 years old and his name 
was Little Bull of the Comanche tribe. 

Little Bull got fat and saucy, but two years of con- 
finement was too much for him and he died of con- 
sumption. He was held with a view of a probable 
exchange for some of our own unfortunate prisoners. 
This ends that raid by the Indians. 

The conditions on the frontier of Texas at that time 
is why the Frontier Battalion was put in the service of 
the State. The Indian Bureau was put into the hands 
and management of a Quaker policy, as it was called 
and sentiment ruled it, more than proper executive 
ability. Fennimore Cooper 's ' ' noble red man ' ' seemed 
to be the leading spirit of sympathy and the dastardly 
murders of our people were readily forgiven, on that 
score. 

There was a bill introduced in Congress to turn over 
the Indian Bureau to the War Department or to the 
Army. Senator Coke of Texas spoke in favor of the 
measure, saying in part: "You may treat with the 
Indian, and he accepts your gifts, but he takes them 
as a concession to his prowess, and asks for more pow- 
der and lead to kill our people." He added that the 
only thing you can teach an Indian is fear. But Sena- 
tor Coke did not stop there; he pleaded with "Uncle 



56 Eangers and Sovereignty 

Sam" for indemnity for the money Texas had to 
spend for protection, and it was partially paid to 
the state. Paying this money to Texas was an acknowl- 
edgement by the government of default in our pro- 
tection. ''Uncle Sam" was not exactly in the life 
insurance business, but should have been, under the 
chartered rights of Texas. 

The bill introduced in Congress transferring the 
Indian Bureau to the War Department was passed. 
We then looked for a change for the better, but I am 
sorry to say that only a few of the regular army 
officers got out of the Rip Van Winkle column. How- 
ever, I will mention two who did excellent work on 
the Texas frontier. They were General McKinzey and 
Captain Bullis. 



Rangers and Sovereignty 57 



Third Saline Fight 

About the last of November, in 1874, I moved camp 
south 15 or 20 miles, to the Little Saline Creek in 
Mason County and made winter quarters there. 

Early one morning in December, Mr. Moore, a 
ranchman, came to my camp and informed me that 
the night just past the Indians had stolen all their 
horses, passing out in a northerly direction. I was 
not well that morning, but quickly detailed a scout 
to follow them, Sergeant N. 0. Reynolds in charge 
of scout. Sergeant Reynolds struck west to get the 
trail and in eight miles from camp he came upon the 
trail, going north. 

On account of the very heavy rains just before this 
he had no trouble to follow the trail. Within ten miles 
from where they struck the trail they came in sight 
of the Indians. The Indians numbered about ten and 
the scouts about eight. The Indians were hard to beat 
in management and were very quick to act. They 
were some distance from the scout, and the ground 
being very boggy, they started on a retreat but at 
slow speed. The distance between the scout and the 
Indians was about a mile. The Indians no doubt 
expected the scout would cover the distance as quickly 
as possible and break down their horses in doing so. 
And that was practically the result. 



58 Rangers and Sovereignty 

But three of my men were mounted on good, big 
Spanish horses that held their speed and kept the 
interval closed about the same for five or six miles, 
through the mud nearly knee deep, when my "boys" 
discovered the Indians' horses were weakening. Then 
for a fight, w^as in order. My men knew that help 
was impossible, as they had left all the others early in 
the chase. James Hawkins, John Cupp and William 
Springer were the men who overtook them. They 
determined to fight it out if not one of them ever 
returned to camp. So, very soon, the firing com- 
menced. The country was open, practically a prairie. 
The Indians tried a flank movement on them several 
times in order to surround them, but my men caught 
the move in time and would give back a little, break< 
ing their strength in the center and they could easily 
take care of the flankers. So, this went on, probably 
two hours. My men had the best of it in horses, as 
their horses were strong, on grain, and the Indian's 
horses were grass fed. During the fight my men got 
two of them "down for good," and saw them drag 
off another one with a rope attached to a horse, which 
was the only horse they got away with. None of my 
"boys" were hurt. After a little relax from excite- 
ment and fatigue the Rangers began to gather up 
their horses and spoils of battle, returning to camp 
late in the night. 

Sergeant Reynolds had come into camp late in the 
evening and reported the last he had seen of the 



Rangers and Sovereignty 59 

three men they were still in pursuit of the Indians. 
At nightfall everything in camp was deathly still. 
You could see men in little groups discussing in a low 
voice what might have befallen ''Jim" Hawkins, 
Cupp and Springer. Some were listening for sounds 
of hoofs or any token of their approach. Finally one 
man said he heard the sound of horses coming, and 
human voices, and still all was anxiety. When they 
came up to the corral one of them sung out "all's 
well. ' ' Then the yell in camp went up which paid for 
all our anxiety. 

If we may claim any credit for service in the fron- 
tier battalion, we are inclined to give it to the brave 
men who did the fighting, at least, in a great measure. 
They were all "generals." When we detailed a man 
to go anywhere to make an arrest or do any par- 
ticular work, we didn't have to send another man 
with him to tell him what to do. 

My men had lost their pack mule in the fight, as 
they were so busy looking after their own hair just 
then, the mule had to take care of itself. When they 
rounded up the remains of the battle and started for 
camp the mule was missing. It had followed them by 
sight or trailed them in the long chase, and soon after 
they engaged the Indians the mule was with them. 
The next morning I took four men with me and went 
to the battle ground, and took the mule's trail, which 
led me up on a little ridge or raise of ground, where 
the Indians had made their first stand. The mule's 



60 Rangers and Sovereignty 

trail led me directly to where one of the Indians lay 
dead, and I could see along the trail and nearby this 
dead Indian where he had tried to catch the mule, but 
failed; every track showed plainly in the mud. The 
trail of the mule led north from there, and within 
five miles, came to the Las Moras Creek which led 
east to Menardville and landed in one of my old 
camps safely with her pack. The people there were 
uneasy, as they knew the mule and thought some- 
thing serious had happened to us. We hurried to 
catch up with the mule, but knew she was safe from 
the lead of her trail. I had been reported killed once 
before that, ''but I knew it was not true when I 
heard it." Our pack mules in the service displayed 
almost human intelligence and were our faithful 
friends. When we lost our pack mule in the Staked 
Plains fight, it was not regretted as merely the loss 
of a mule, but with sorrow for the poor mule's sake. 
It was late when we got our mule, at Menardville, 
and slushy snow and mud being bad we camped 
there that night and returned to camp on the Saline 
the next day, the distance being 25 miles. 

Old Company D turned out five captains of com- 
panies, who served in the Frontier Battalion after 
Captain Perry who was its first commander. They 
were respectively. Captain D. W. Roberts, Captain 
L. P. Seiker, Captain N. 0. Reynolds, Captain C. L. 
Neville and Captain Frank Jones. Captain Roberts 
gave the last four named their first non-commissioned 
offices. 



Rangers and Sovereigntt 61 



Moved Camp to Las Moras 

About the first of June in 1875, I moved camp to 
Las Moras Creek, being north of my little Saline 
camp about twenty miles, and four miles east of the 
town, Menardville. By this time the citizens had 
learned that we were good neighbors and began to 
fall into line. They could see the gleam of hope and 
our presence cheered them. They could see that they 
would become the rightful lords of that beautiful 
country. They would ride to the camp from many 
miles away no matter how dark the night, to give me 
information regarding Indians or outlaws. I had 
become acquainted with some young men in the 
country there that wanted to help us and when oppor- 
tunity offered I would enlist them in the service. 
They were mostly cattle men and their range riding 
was many miles around the ranches. This gave me a 
prestige in their knowing of every water hole and 
spring of water in all the arid region adjoining the 
Staked Plains. The people began to find out that 
this was a citizen soldiery, organized under the same 
power that puts our militia in the field and the 
Ranger felt that his backing was from the State of 
Maine to California and from Canada to the most 
Southern point in Texas. He felt that he had very 



62 Rangers and Sovereignty 

distinguished relatives, from ''Uncle Sam" to our big 
cousins, the States, and he was ordered and disciplined 
accordingly. The name, Ranger, was born in the 
Republic of Texas when great men were on guard 
for the welfare of their young venture. They may 
have done some things under emergency, that lent 
a little romance to the name, which yet seems to attach 
to the name Ranger. When Texas was admitted into 
the sisterhood of States, the name Ranger was tactily 
incorporated into her constitution, meaning her 
militia. 

As time passed on our neighbors began to think 
that the Rangers were decent fellows. Some of the 
Rangers were graduates from the best schools in the 
country. But their Ranger education was along dif- 
ferent lines. They had learned to cope with the 
"Wild Bills" and bad men from "Bitter Creek." 
The young ladies and gentlemen began to visit us in 
camp and the girls would eat beans with us at the mess 
tables. The Rangers viewed them as beautiful mes- 
sengers of peace. We could see that social conditions 
were improving; in a short time you could see some 
of the "boys" with standing collars on. Think of 
it, a Ranger with a standing collar on. They began to 
name each other "Society Jake, 400 Jim, Ward Mc- 
Allister, Oscar Wilde," and the like. When they 
were fitting out for a baile (dance) you could see a 
fellow rustling all the tents for a suit of clothes and 
the other fellows threatening to follow him and tell 



Rangers and Sovereignty 63 

who the clothes belonged to. About that time the 
racket dance was introduced and they practiced it in 
camp, in the literal sense of the word. The Rangers 
made up an amateur troupe and secured some of De- 
Witt's light draft plays, which they could execute 
with credit before any kind of an audience. We had 
a very good string band. Such were the pleasure 
hours of Ranger life. They nearly all became good 
cooks and when dinner was ready you could hear some 
fellow sing out from his mess table, Delmonico "wal- 
loping good truck." We had fish when we wanted 
them, and all kinds of wild game. When we packed 
a mule for a scout we invariably tied a chopping axe 
on the pack to cut bee trees, and had all the honey 
We could "say grace over." Where is the country 
on this continent that Texas once was ? Echo answers 
— where? The answer may come that agriculture 
and other great improvements makes her first. But, 
shorn of nature's wealth, she only becomes a compet- 
itor with other states. ' 

A little while after I had moved camp to Las Moras 
I got a telegram from Adjutant-general Steele, from 
headquarters at Austin, "To go to Colorado City as 
quickly as the stage could take me there ; travel day 
and night." The meaning of this was that Captain 
Marsh's Rangers had killed a "cattle man" by the 
name of Patterson and telegrams were flying to Aus- 
tin, ^ ' That a citizen had been shot down in cold blood. ' ' 
Colorado City was then a town of tents at the end of 



64 Rangers and Sovereignty 

the Texas Pacific Railroad, in its construction. I 
got there and said nothing about my business until 
I could find out the truth of what had happened. 
I went to A. W. Dunn & Co., merchants there and 
''felt of them softly," when I found out that they 
were non-partisan and were not mixed up in it in any 
way, and from them I got a start to investigate. 
They sent me to the railroad agent, Mr. Stocking, 
and Mr. Stocking showed me the bullet holes shot 
through his car by Mr. Patterson and others while his 
family was in the car. I felt a delicacy in invading 
Captain Marsh's headquarters on such business, but 
I was under orders. I met Captain Marsh in the mean- 
time and told him my business. He was very glad 
to see me there and more than glad, as it relieved 
him of embarrassment. 

Mr. Patterson, while under the influence of liquor, 
had made some very disparaging remarks about the 
Rangers and emphasized them with "sulphurous" 
language. Captain Marsh had but one arm, having 
lost one in the Confederate Army. But the arm he 
had- was ' ' game to the shoulder ' ' and he lit into 
Patterson, when a good fisticuff followed. This some- 
what disqualified Captain Marsh to deal with what 
followed. Mr. Patterson was a well-to-do ranchman, 
and said to be a good man when not under bad influ- 
ences. The town was full of cow punchers and bad 
men and women, and they egged Patterson on to defy 
the law. Three Rangers were detailed to keep order 



Eangers and Sovereignty 65 

in the town. Mr. Patterson was disturbing the peace, 
and was armed, and the Rangers arrested him several 
times, and would take him before the justice of the 
peace and that dignitary would turn him loose by fi- 
ning him one dollar. The Rangers told Patterson that 
they would kill him if he didn't stop it. So he persisted 
in ''painting the town red" and they did kill him. 
I made my report to the Adjutant-general, according 
to the facts, and returned to my own company. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 67 



The Staked Plains Fight 

In August, 1875, a band of Indians came down 
into Kimble, Mason and Menard counties, entering 
Kimble County first, then east into Mason, and out 
north through Menard County. Near the line of 
Kimble and Mason Counties stood a little flat-topped 
mountain, overlooking the Kimble and Mason road. 
Those Indians had two prisoners with them, one was 
a white boy named Fisher, whom they had captured 
in Mason County when he was quite young, and the 
other one was a Mexican boy that they had captured 
in Uvalde County. Both had grown up to be nearly 
men. 

The Indians left these two boys, on top of the little 
mountain to spy out on the road for any passers, or 
pursuers, while they diverged south, into Major Seth 
Mabry's fjasture, to collect horses. While those boys 
were on top of the mountain, at their post, C. C. Smith 
and another cattleman came along the road. The 
white boy, Fisher, proposed to the Mexican, that they 
go down and kill them, but the Mexican wouldn 't agree 
to it. Why I knew all this will be explained later, by 
my capturing the Mexican, and getting his own story 
in broken Spanish, his having almost lost his mother 
tongue from long Indian captivity. 



68 Rangers and Sovereignty 

I was then encamped on the Las Moras, about 50 
miles north of where they were raiding. A messenger 
came to my camp, from Mason County and informed 
me of the raid, and told me where they were last seen, 
and the way they were ''headed" coming out. I had 
no time to lose, as I knew they would travel at night. 
I started east with eight men and within 12 miles came 
upon their trail. I had no trouble to follow it, as they 
had stolen a big lot of horses. I pushed ahead on their 
trail, hoping to catch them before night, but they had 
too much time on me, and nightfall caught me, just 
where they crossed the Fort McKavett and Concho 
road. I looked ahead, in their direction, and could see 
the little Lipan Mountains on the head of the South 
Concho, and I ''figured" they would rest there, where 
they could spy back on their trail. I turned north, on 
the Concho road, and traveled that night to Kickapoo 
Springs, where I could get horses' shoes, my horse 
ha^dng cast two of his shoes that day, and broken his 
hoofs, so that he was almost past shoeing. We shod up, 
by firelight, and was riding by daylight, north, on 
the Concho road, with flankers on either side, so we 
would cross no trails without seeing them. "We came 
to Lipan Springs, 15 or 20 miles from Kickapoo, and 
from Lipan, we bore northwest completely surrounding 
the Lipan Mountains. On that day's march I rode 
upon a "rattler" and got my horse snake-bitten. I 
changed off to a pack mule, but I knew the mule and 
and knew she was a "dandy", and could run like a 



Rangers and Sovereignty 69 

red fox. I left a man with my horse, to get him back 
to Lipan Springs, and take care of him. We reached 
''Wash" De Long's camp that night, on the head of 
South Concho, where he was taking out an irrigation 
ditch. "Wash" was an old-timer, and had been shot, 
and maimed by the Indians, but still insisted on living 
where he pleased. He gave me considerable informa- 
tion, as to their pass-ways, in and out. Next morning 
I bore a little south of west, to catch their trail, after 
their passing through the Lipan Mountains. About 
18 miles from De Long's camp, I came upon the Indian 
camp, where they had left that morning. Then the 
race for that day began. They skirted the head brakes 
of the Conchos, and night caught me again, where they 
had reached a high table land, known as the Staked 
Plains. I was very close to them at night. 

I pulled a little off of the trail, and wouldn't let 
a man strike a match to smoke, as they could see a 
light a long distance in that country. By daylight I 
was in the saddle, and going on the trail. I had field 
glasses, and occasionally would look for them, but one 
Ranger's eyes beat my glasses. He sung out "yonder 
they are". I put my glasses on his object, and saw 
them plainly. They were just moving out from their 
camp, at a big lake of water, which v/as unkno\Mi to 
many white men. The Mexicans told me afterwards, 
that one of them said, as they moved out from camp, 
that no white man would ever come there, and if they 
did he could whip ten of them. So, you see, the red 



70 Rangers and Sovereignty 

man is not immune from braggadocio. It was not an 
hour until he had a test of it. Now, to get them, in 
that open plain. The sun was just up good, and put 
on his big blaze for an August day ; the direction they 
were from us, nearly lined them with the sun, and I or- 
dered my men to line in straight behind me, in single 
file, which would only show a breast of one man. They 
did, and tracked as plumb as a new wagon. I got near- 
ly in shooting distance of those fellows before they 
saw me. Two of the Indians were loitering along be- 
hind the main squad, who were driving the horses, and 
about two hundred yards behind them, and we could 
have shot them before they saw us, but we didn't want 
to ''flush" the main bunch, until we could get near 
enough to do business. When the two Indians saw us, 
it was a very busy time with them. They plied their 
quirts, and yelled to their comrades, and we were not 
losing any time or distance on them. When Indians are 
driving a herd of stolen horses, they leave drag ropes 
to the best horses, as an ''emergency clause". In this 
case, they barely had time to jump down, grab ropes 
and change horses, which some of them did, leaving 
their saddles on the horses they had so unceremoniously 
quit. They ran out, into line and "squared themselves 
for the charge". I played my old ruse on them. We 
ran up close enough to do good work, halted, and dis- 
mounted. I always figured that one good man on the 
ground, with a gun in his hands was worth three in 
the saddle. They stood one good round, and began to 



Rangers and Sovereignty 71 

smell blood and left there, like a covey of quail. There 
was one Indian riding ahead of them, about a half a 
mile, who had not seen, or heard any of this, and when 
they got to him, he rallied them and they made another 
stand, and fought like demons for a few minutes. 
We were wounding some of their horses, as well as 
warriors, and to lose a horse, right then was ' ' goodbye 
John" to the rider. One Indian's horse was shot from 
under him, and he had caught the same bullet through 
the ankle, but didn't break the bone, and he jumped up 
behind the young man Fisher, on a big stallion that be- 
longed to John Bright, and just then, they began to 
''hit the breeze" in different directions. 

The commander of the Indians, was old Magooshe, 
a Lipan, and now on the Mescalero Reservation, and 
claims to be an Apache. Magooshe broke to the left, 
with six men, and I put in after him, with three men, 
and I must tell you who those brave men were. They 
were "Jim" Hawkins, Paul Durham, and ''Nick" 
Donley. Donley was an Irishman, and loved peace, 
but a fight, with him, was a mere incident. The other 
Indians broke into different squads, and nj|y men after 
them. We pursued Magooshe and his party, at full 
speed, for three or four miles, when we saw one of their 
horses weakening, and gradually falling back, and we 
had fired several times at the rider. All of a sudden, 
the rider jerked up his horse, wheeled him about, and 
came back to meet us, and yelling in broken Spanish 
that he was a friend. I told the men not to shoot him. 



72 Rangers and Sovereignty 

He was the Mexican captive that the Indians had had 
so long. We passed the Mexican, with the brief words 
to Donley to "stay with him, until we returned". We 
were making pretty near an even race, in distance, with 
those ahead of us, and could see blood running down 
one of their backs. A distance of about two miles fur- 
ther, our own horses began to weaken, and we could 
see a little clump of mesquite brush, that the Indians 
were making for. One of them was riding a fine horse, 
that belonged to Rans Moore, and when we got near 
the brush we could see a horse tied in there. We shear- 
ed around, on either side of the brush, but could see 
no Indians in there. We looked ahead and saw them 
still going. We pursued them, but never could get 
much closer. We could see, however, that two of them 
were on a big mare mule, that also belonged to John 
Bright. We kept up the best lick we could, until they 
gradually went out of sight. We could nearly read 
what had happened, by their tying Rans Moore's 
horse in the brush. The wounded Indian was riding 
the big mule, and had to stop, or have help. The other 
Indian tied his horse there, jumped up behind him, 
presumably to hold him on. Why he tied the horse, 
was thinking we might check to reconnoitre the spot, 
and give them more distance ahead of us. The little 
pack mule I was riding, kept an easy lead all day. 
''Don't talk to me about a mule". If he will run at 
all, and you give him a starter, you will never catch 
him. 



Rangers and Sovereignty 73 

We went back to where we had left Donley with the 
Mexican, no Donley, anywhere in sight. The tension of 
excitement was abated, and we could think more about 
the tired condition of our horses, and rode at a mode- 
rate gait, to where we had the first fight. We found 
Donley there with the prisoner. He explained that, 
''after staying where we left him, several hours, he 
thought we might never return, and that dreary plain 
made him lonesome" (Irish.) The other men had all 
gotten back, and gave the casualties of their respective 
chases. 

Sergeant Ed. Seiker and J. B. Gillette had followed 
the white man, (Fisher) and the Indian up behind him, 
on a "dead run" for several miles, and seeing they 
were outrunning them, both on one horse, Gillette 
jumped off his horse, took a long shot at them, and 
struck their horse, just back of the ears, when he fell 
like a ton of brick. They ran up to the horse, and 
found Fisher pinioned under him, and Gillette told 
Seiker not to shoot him, that he was a white man. 
The Indian rolled off, when the horse fell, and dodged 
around a while, but they soon got him. When they 
went back to look after Fisher, he had worked him- 
self from under the horse and was gone. They thought 
he couldn't escape in that open plain. The grass was 
high, which was the only shelter. When they told me 
what they could about it, I sent them back to see if 
they could find him. Then the sun was about an hour 



74 Rangers and Sovereignty 

high, and didn't give much time to hunt him. They 
returned, at dusk, without finding him. 

We found then that we had nothing to eat, having 
lost our pack mule in the race. We had not stopped, 
the day before, to cook anything and were feeling like 
a lot of hoboes, on a western railroad. We had cap- 
tured a big lot of mustang (wild horse) meat from the 
Indians, but it was only barbecued enough to make 
it palatable for a buzzard, and the "boys" only sam- 
pled it lightly. It was about 70 miles back the nearest 
way to ''Wash" De Long's camp, on the head of 
South Concho, and we had a herd of broken down 
horses to drive. It took us nearly two days to get into 
De Long's camp. Some of the boys tried prickly pear 
apples, but it didn't take long, to get all of them that 
were good. When we got within ten miles of Mr. De- 
Long 's camp, I took the Mexican with me, and hurried 
on, to have a beef killed, and get something for the 
men to eat. Arriving at the camp, I found Mr. De 
Long was not there, but that fact didn't bother 
me much. I went into his little cabin, found some big 
pans full of sweet milk, and drank milk like a hungry 
porker, and gave the Mexican his fill of it. Mr. De 
Long soon came in, and we had a spread for the 
Rangers that tasted superior to anything that Del- 
monico's ever served. 

We will tell you later, all about Fisher. Next day, 
we started for camp on Las Moras, (meaning morass, 
or marshy) a distance of about a hundred miles, but 



Rangers and Sovereignty 75 

we were safe for ''grub", all the frontiersmen made 
the Rangers as welcome as the ''Flowers in May", 
besides we were getting back to our backing, by the 
great state of Texas. A few days after we got to camp, 
Major Jones arrived there. We turned the Mexican 
over to him, and as we had not heard of his people 
directly, the Major thought he would keep the Mexican 
with him, until we could locate his people. The news- 
papers had given publicity to our having him, and 
his people came from Uvalde County, and got him. 

Now, to account for Fisher. Nearly a year after 
this, Fisher was found, at Fort Sill, with the Indians, 
and parties negotiated for him, or rather, his liberty, 
and sent him back to his people, in Mason County, 
Texas. Think of it. To buy one of our captive peo- 
ple, from a savage tribe who were seeking shelter, un- 
der our government. 

I saw Fisher after he came back, and had a talk 
with him. He told me that he was back on the identi- 
cal ground, where the horse was shot from under him, 
and could tell me of the incidents that occurred in 
that fight, that I had forgotten. He told me that when 
the men were hunting for him in the grass, that they 
had ridden very close to him, but he was "hugging 
^he ground." I asked him why he didn't show himself, 
and he said he thought they would kill him. Fisher 
visits the same old squad of Indians occasionally, on 
the Mescalero Reservation. 



Rangers and Sovereignty 77 



Viewing Out A Road 

Within six weeks after our Staked Plains skirmish 
our Adjutant General, Wm. Steele, received a requisi- 
tion from Col. Klitz, commanding the post at Fort 
McKavett, asking for a man to go with a detachment 
of U. S. soldiers to view out a road from Fort Mc- 
Kavett to Fort Stockton: Fort McKavett was at the 
head springs of the San Saba River, and Fort Stockton 
was 26 miles west of the Pecos River, and opposite the 
old Horsehead crossing. The fact had become pretty 
generally known, that the Rangers traveled without a 
map, or compass. Their reckonings were made by the 
sun, and North star, taking into consideration the 
main rivers that run through the state, from north to 
south and the relative distance between them. 

Lieutenant Bottsford of the regular army, was in 
command of the detachment to view out the road. 
General Steele ordered us to furnish the guide, and I 
detailed Sergeant Ed. Seiker to go with them. Ser- 
geant Seiker having been with me in the Plains fight, 
when we were led to these big lakes by the Indians, 
and being as good as a Comanche on direction. 

He started out to lead them through. Sergeant 
Seiker had a keen sense of the ridiculous, and told 
me of the great praise he had heard of himself from 



78 Rangers and Sovereignty 

the Soldier Boys, when they were lying on their blan- 
kets at night. They said they might have all perished 
if he had not passed them through the "Red Sea". 
They made him out the equal if not greater than Kit 
Carson. Sergeant Seiker was enjoying a laugh to 
himself, mixed with pity, for men in their occupation 
to be so dependent. 

In crossing the table land Seiker rode up squarely 
to our pack mule that we had lost in the engagement 
with the Indians. The poor mule was dead, and the 
pack lying with it ; he thought if the Rangers had been 
with him, they would have buried it with the honors 
of war. 

He bore northwest, for his direction, and in 20 or 
30 miles, they came to the head brakes of some stream, 
where it threaded out against the table land. It 
proved to be Live Oak Creek, a tributary of the Pecos 
River. 

Just there. Sergeant Seiker noticed little trails of 
deer and antelope, which pointed in to one place, and 
thinking they went to water, he followed the little 
trails down to a little depression and did find water. 
The water only showed up about two feet in length, 
down in a crevice of rocks, and those small animals 
had worn the rocks slick putting their heads in there 
to drink. It was fine, living water. 

Then the scout was all right, had plenty of good 
water and could get an antelope or deer when they 
wanted it. After Lieutenant Bottsford rested a while 



Rangers and Sovereignty 79 

he began to figure where he was, and concluded that 
was the head drainage of Live Oak Creek, that en- 
tered into the Pecos at old Fort Lancaster, which was 
right. Then he had easy sailing for his road. He 
went west to the pontoon crossing on the Pecos, then 
he had his road to Fort Stockton. That spring was 
called Grierson Spring, but Ed. Seiker found it. Lieu- 
tenant Bottsford was a good officer, and Ed. Seiker 
is dead, but his memory still lives. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 81 



Capt Roberts Married 

About the last of August, 1875, Major John B. 
Jones reached Company ^'D" on his march westward 
along the line of the companies. He had an ' ' inkling 
that Lieut. D. W. Roberts was intending to tender 
his resignation, the purpose being to get married. 
The Major, in his characteristic fine tact, broached 
the matter first, and in his keen black eyes was a 
laughing twinkle that told me that he had anticipated 
me fully. He told me that he was in perfect accord 
with my idea of getting married, but, that my res- 
ignation was not at all necessary. He told me I could 
have a leave of absence, as long as I thought neces- 
sary, and to bring my wife on out to the company, 
or, I could leave her temporarily at a neighboring 
village, until I could prepare comfortable quarters 
for her, in, or near camp. He said he would see to 
it, that such arrangements were satisfactorily made. 
I agreed to do as he told me. But, a second considera- 
tion came to my mind, that I had been too hasty. 
My intended bride had not been consulted, as to 
whether she would come out among the red-skins 
or not. She had been reared in the town of Columbus, 
Texas, and knew comparatively little about the fron- 
tier. But, I went to Columbus, and told her the 



82 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

whole story, and happily, she agreed to the pro- 
gramme, and appeared to think it the climax of all 
the romance she had ever indulged in. 

My wife was Miss Luvenia Conway, and we were 
married on September 13th, 1875. Mrs. Roberts is 
still living, and keeps my good old love letters as 
a menace to treachery. We took leave of Columbus, 
immediately after our marriage ceremony, the train 
having waited for the event, and via the City of 
Houston, we reached the City of Austin on Septem- 
ber 14th. Stayed in Austin a few days, or until our 
ambulance and escort could meet us there. When the 
"boys" made their appearance, it was Mrs. Roberts' 
first sight of Rangers. When we took up our march 
for camp, nearly 200 miles distant, four men rode 
just ahead of the ambulance, with all the parapher- 
nalia of Rangers, I noticed Mrs. Roberts taking them 
in, with intense scrutiny. Their broad belts, full of 
cartridges, and a leather string, to which a hair brush 
was attached, to clean the rifle barrel, which hung 
down from the rear of the belt, was the one thing that 
appeared to "paralyze" her; finally she ventured to 
ask me what that was. I told her that all the original 
stock of Rangers had "caudal appendages". She 
gave me her first searching, doubtful look. In after 
years, she found out, that I was a charter member of 
the Ananias Club. 

The second day's march took us by the residence 
of an old colored woman, that had belonged to my 



Rangers and Sovereignty 83 

father since before I was born. I could not pass her 
without stopping to see her. She came out and grab- 
bed me, in the fashion of a silver-tip bear, and pressed 
me to her good old warm heart. I introduced her to 
my wife, and her first expression was "Daniel, you 
have married a beautiful woman." Mrs. Roberts took 
the compliment gracefully, but after we had driven 
a little distance from the cabin, I told her that the 
old ' ' darky ' ' had been blind for forty years. 

That evening brought us to Blanco City (my old 
home town), where we were greeted with open arms 
by some of the best men and women on earth. That 
reassured my wife that I might have been respecta- 
ble when I was young. The next day brought us to 
Fredericksburg. It was on Sunday evening. The 
custom of the old German people was to have their 
gala day on Sunday, and a big ball was "on tap" at 
Charles Nimetz' hotel. Mrs. Roberts watched the gay 
dancers, until Terpsicore got the best of the Bible, 
and she joined in the beautiful waltz. She wished 
that the dance might last until morning, as she inight 
merge the dark end of two days into only half of a 
crime. 

Next day we reached, Fort Mason. Mason was Gen- 
eral Robert E. Lee's "ante-bellum" quarters. We 
were then within 50 miles of my camp. I could begin 
to hear what was happening in that section. I con- 
cluded that I had better leave Mrs. Roberts in Mason, 
and go myself up to the head of the San Saba River, 



84 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

where my camp was, and see if the ''sky was all 
clear". I left my wife in Mason, with my friends, 
Mr. and Mrs. Henry M. Holmes. Mr. Holmes was 
the private secretary of Governor "Sul" Ross. I 
went on up to my camp and found matters quiet. I 
returned to Mason within ten days, and took Mrs. 
Roberts up to Menardville, where we were to take 
our Ranger quarters for the winter. 

There was not a house in the town that was in any 
way related to a saw mill, and brick yards were away 
back in older civilization. We engaged board with 
Mr. and Mrs. John Scott. Mrs. Scott was postmaster 
at Menardville, and she was an estimable lady. She 
had plenty of work to do besides a pen full of cows to 
milk. I volunteered to milk the cows for her, but she 
told me that ''they wouldn't let John come into the 
pen". I insisted that she should give me the pail and 
let me try it, which she did. I walked into the pen, 
and milked the cows without any difficulty, and I 
guess John Scott hates me for it yet. 

I prepared quarters for us, about one and one-half 
miles from the town, and we soon went into camp. 
Here we spent our honey-moon, with sweet old King 
Nature, watching the wild ducks and geese splash in 
the beautiful water of the San Saba River. Our only 
music was the gobble of wild turkeys and the splash 
of beavers ' tails against the water, and our little string 
band in camp, sent a wireless message back — to Home 
Sweet Home. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 85 

The rifle and revolver were not the only potent 
factors in advancing the successful settlement of the 
frontier. The ' ' Man with the Hoe ' ', was our partner, 
and while we watched his enemies, he, in turn, sup- 
plied us with corn and oats for our faithful horses, 
and built himself a nice home. As soon as people 
began to feel secure in their citizenship, the American 
spirit of enterprise asserted itself. 

When the Republic of Texas came into the Union 
of States, she reserved all her public domain, and ap- 
propriated it to the upbuilding of the state, in public 
institutions and school funds. And ''Uncle Sam" 
was not more liberal in giving the people homes. I 
think it was the Fourteenth Legislature that offered a 
land subsidy, to encourage irrigation, specifying the 
dimensions of a ditch to carry the water, say six feet 
wide, at the bottom of the ditch, and twelve feet wide, 
from cut to cut across the top, and four feet deep, 
on level ground. For this class of ditch, the state 
offered three sections of land to the mile of ditch, not 
otherwise appropriated, to the makers of that grade 
of ditches. The state not reserving sluj rental, or any 
further claim on the enterprise. Under this coven- 
ant, between the state and the citizen we had the 
pleasure of seeing the first ditch made, and stood 
guard for the workers in their happy vocation. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 87 



The Mason County War 

When we were encamped in Mason County, a fend 
between cattlemen arose to proportions that gave it 
the name of the "Mason County War". Major Jones 
had to take the ' ' bull by the horns ' ' and help to quell 
it. The civil authorities also did their best to stop it, 
but it hinged in the midst of what was probably the 
largest of cattle operations in the state at that time. 

The largest per cent, of citizens in Mason County 
were Germans who had accumulated fine stocks of 
cattle by their usual frugality. Mr. Lemberg was 
engaged in shipping and driving cattle to the Kansas 
markets. He had in his employ Mr. "Tim" William- 
son, who handled his herds. Complaint was rife that 
cattle belonging to ranchmen were taken by whole- 
sale, by the men moving herds, and not accounted for 
to the owners. 

Mr. Williamson was on his road to the town of 
Mason, being 15 or 20 miles from Lemberg 's store, 
when a mob seized him and killed him. This act was 
laid to the Germans. Other cattlemen, who were 
thought to be "shady" in their dealings, took advan- 
tage of this to excite the Americans against the Ger- 
mans. This started the "Mason County War". 

I was in the town of Mason, having come in alone 



88 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

to buy grain for my camp, and was sleeping at Major 
Hunter's hotel. Had not more than embraced the 
sweet charms of Morpheus when Sheriff John Clark 
ran into my room and yelled at me to get up, that a 
big lot of men were mobbing the jail. The cause of 
this mob was that a lot of men had been apprehended 
with a whole herd of cattle that did not belong to 
them, and were put in jail. To resume : James 
Trainer and myself went with Sheriff Clark to the 
jail and when we got within twenty steps of the mob, 
who were assembled at the jail door, we were ordered 
to halt, and that in tones that meant business. They 
told the Sheriff that they would not hurt us, pro- 
vided we kept our distance. We backed off to the 
court house, say thirty steps from the jail and the 
Sheriff ran up stairs to a south room, put his rifle 
through the window and told the mob that the first 
d — d man that touched that jail door, he would kill 
him. Seeing that they might have to kill all three 
of us, about ten men came right in by Trainer and 
myself, didn't even say ''good evening" and went 
upstairs to talk to Clark. They told the Sheriff that 
they meant no harm to him or the county, but they 
were going to have those men, even if they had to 
hurt him in doing so. There were about forty men 
of the mob, Clark saw he w^as "up against it". The 
Sheriff came down and told Trainer and myself to get 
off a little distance and watch them until he could 
go for help. While he was gone, the mob secured 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 89 

battering rams, broke the jail door, took five cattle 
rustlers out of the jail and started south with 
them. 

"When the Sheriff returned with five or six men, 
we started after them, all on foot except the Sheriff; 
we took a turkey trot down the Fredericksburg road 
about half a mile, when the mob began to shoot, we 
thinking they were shooting at us, we returned the 
fire, at the blaze of their guns, but got no answer. 
They had heard us coming, and were not through with 
their work, and commenced to shoot the men they had 
not hanged. The Sheriff being horseback, ran down 
to where the shooting was, found the two Baccus 
brothers and a man named Turley, hanging to the 
limb of a tree, Wiggins with his brains shot out, and 
the fifth man gone. Sheriff Clark quickly cut the 
men down from the tree, and when I got there, I 
examined Turley, found his neck was not broken, and 
was warm. I ran to a branch nearby, dipped water 
in my hat, ran back to Turley, poured it on him, rub- 
bed him, and he soon showed signs of returning to 
life. He gradually came to life, with a glassy stare 
in his eyes. He could not talk until next morning. 
The Baccus brothers were both dead. The fifth man, 
Johnson, when we began to fire on them, jerked the 
rope over his head, jumped over the fence and went on 
' ' 21 ", across the plowed ground. Johnson was a ^ ' ten- 
derfoot" and was only hired to drive the wagon and 
cook for the Baccus outfit. I think it was the third 



90 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

day after that, Jolinson came to my camp, foot-sore 
and wild. 

District court opened in Mason, and Judge Everett 
sent a messenger to me with a note saying "Don't 
turn Johnson over to any Sheriff or any one. I will 
notify you when to have him here." The Judge sent 
out for Johnson, and we took him to Mason, under 
a safe guard. The Judge sent him before the grand 
jury, to see if he would identify any of the mob. 
Johnson could tell nothing, of a positive nature, and 
feigned to not know them. He was not prompted by 
any one to tell, or not tell anything. But we were 
glad he did not tell any more than he did, as it might 
frustrate our plans of catching them. Also, we didn't 
know but what some members of that grand jury 
belonged to the mob. I was summoned before the 
grand jury, and they "fired into me", and cross- 
fired, until I began to think they were prying into 
"state secrets". I knew nothing, at the time, that I 
thought the grand jury ought to have, and I parried 
them with the "semi-truth," and we made a drawn 
battle. 

In quick sequence, a man named William Coke was 
missing. Mr. Coke was foreman of a cattle ranch near 
Mason. The last heard of him, a man named Miller, 
who lived in Mason, had seen him on the range, and 
talked with him. The Major ordered me to take a 
scout in search of Coke, and take Miller with me. Mr. 
Miller showed where he ^lad seen Coke and talked 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 91 

with him, but no tracks could be found. A little later, 
one evening when old Sol had bade us all adieu, in 
the west, Johnson went to Mr. Miller's residence, in 
Mason and shot him. Johnson thinking he had ' ' done 
for him", was never seen in that section again. Miller 
recovered. William Coke was never heard of, and we 
think his bones were bleaching in some cavern, so 
often the receptacle of crime. 

Following in succession, when Daniel Hoerster, a 
prominent man, was riding down the street in Mason, 
he was shot off his horse and killed. The killing party 
started out of town, in a pretty lively gait, and Peter 
Jordan leveled dovv^n on them with a rifle, at long 
range, and his bullet struck George Gladden 's gun, 
just where his hand was grasping it, and tore Glad- 
den's hand up badly, and almost demolished the breech 
of his gun. They escaped without further casualties. 
By this time the feud was denominated "Germans 
against Americans". This was not true. A short 
time after the killing at Mason, Sheriff Clark got into 
his buggy and drove down to Kellar's store, about 
12 miles south of Mason, on the Llano River. Every- 
body there was on the watch. They saw two men 
coming up to the store, and when they got pretty close 
to the store. Sheriff Clark saw that they were Mose 
Beard and George Gladden. Those two men were con- 
sidered among the fighting men opposing the Sheriff. 
They rode up and dismounted, and the Sheriff stepped 
out on the porch, with his rifle in hand, and the firing 



92 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

commenced at about 30 paces. Young Kellar was sup- 
porting Clark. John Clark was one of the ' ' blue hen 's 
chickens". Within perhaps two minutes the firing 
ceased on Beard and Gladden 's side. Clark saw what 
was the matter. They were both mortally wounded. 
They could, however, get on a horse, and both mounted 
one horse, Gladden holding Beard on the horse, they 
rode back the way they came. The Sheriff got into his 
buggy and drove after them, taking Kellar and an- 
other man with him. Within a mile and a half, they 
came upon them, on the bank of Beaver Creek. Beard 
was dying, and Gladden could go no further. Beard 
died within a short time after the officers got to him. 
Gladden was shot nine times. The Sheriff returned 
and sent his Deputy, James A. Baird, to take care of 
them. Mr. Baird found them, late in the night. He 
built up a big fire near the lifeless body of Mose Beard 
and was just starting for the nearest ranch, to get a 
wagon to move Gladden, when he heard the mail hack 
coming. He waited for the hack and sent Gladden to 
his home in Loyal Valley, on board the hack. Gladden 
got well. Kellar 's store was their "Waterloo' on a 
fighting basis. The killing that followed was sneaking 
murder. 

Some time afterward. Gladden killed Peter Barder, 
in Llano County, and was sent to the penitentiary 
for 99 years. Mr. Barder was considered a ''killer" 
on the other side of the feud. Gladden was pardoned, 
after serving some time in the penitentiary. About 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 93 

the first of all this killing, John Worley was brutally 
murdered by Scott Cooley, on suspicion that he had 
helped to kill Williamson. 

The above constitutes the principal killing, in that 
horrible affair. 

A casual observer may notice that no arrests were 
made on either side. However, we recall, that John 
Ringo, and a few others on the side opposing the civil 
authority were arrested and put in the Burnet County 
jail, but they made their escape without trial. The 
reason that no arrests were made can only rest upon 
hypothesis, and that is: the men supporting civil 
authority, needed no arrest, and those opposing it, 
urged equal claims, of being right, but would not sub- 
mit their grievances to law. 

The Rangers could only support the civil authority 
in cases of actual bloodshed, as Mason County was not 
under martial law. The Rangers could arrest crimi- 
nals, indicted by the courts, and even more, they 
could arrest on information, or actual observance of 
crime, but Mason County had never brought a man 
to trial, during this feud. Sheriff Clark, seeing that 
it would take ''eternal vigilance" for him to live in 
Mason County, resigned the office of sheriff, and left 
for parts best known to himself. Other principal 
actors, against him, went to Arizona, then considered 
a far off land from Texas. The war died out and 
Mason County is now prosperous and happy. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 95 



Rio Grande Campaign 

In 1878, Lieutenant D. W. Roberts resigned the 
command of Company "D" and went to Houston, 
Texas. Lieutenant Frank Moore was put in command 
of the Company, and the Company was stationed on 
the headwaters of the Llano River, until a little un- 
pleasantness came up on the Mexican border. The 
nature of that trouble was that some Mexicans, from 
the Mexican side, came over to the Texas side, and 
committed some offenses that caused their arrest and 
they were tried by the County Judge at Rio Grande 
City and penalties assessed against them, to cause their 
imprisonment. This incensed the Mexicans to a high 
pitch, and they came over, from the Mexican side and 
liberated the Mexican prisoners, and in the row shot 
the County Judge. But the wound was not serious. 
This raised ''Cain" on the border and Companies 
"A" and "D" of the Rangers were ordered there 
immediately. 

Major Jones wrote D. W. Roberts, who was then in 
Houston, that if he would come back and take com- 
mand of his old company, that he would insure him a 
captaincy, and that his pay would be better, etc. I 
concluded to do it, came to Austin, received a captain 's 
commission signed by Governor 0. M. Roberts, pro- 



96 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

ceeded to Laredo, where my old company was stationed, 
and took command of the Company. 

Captain Neal Coldwell, who was Captain of Com- 
pany ''A" had the command of Company ''D" until 
I arrived. He had camped both companies near old 
Fort Mcintosh, which was garrisoned by the United 
States soldiers. We talked to Captain Coldwell as 
to what his opinion was regarding the situation; and 
his keen observance led me to believe that there would 
be no fight with Mexico. 

Pardon a little ''yarn;" two negro boys were discus- 
sing the rank of army officers, as they walked down 
the street, according to their shoulder straps and epaul- 
etts, and noticing an orderly sergeant, as file closer, 
who had more stripes than any of them, one boy said 
to the other ' ' Dat 's mor 'n any Cap 'n. ' ' So it was with 
Captain Coldwell, he was more than any captain in 
ability, and one of the best officers in the service. We 
worked with him or rather under his orders, until 
we could learn what he knew regarding the situation 
on the Rio Grande. By his suggestion, we moved both 
companies down the Rio Grande. I stopped my com- 
pany at Carrizo, just opposite the town of Guerrero, 
in Mexico. Captain Coldwell took station at Ringgold 
barracks, some sixty miles below me. We had sort of 
a "grape vine" line to headquarters at Austin, by 
courier from his camp to mine, thence to Laredo, where 
we could reach the wires. After I had been at Carrizo 
a short time I ventured to go over to the town of 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 97 

Guerrero, in Mexico. Guerrero was twelve miles from 
the river where I crossed at Carrizo. I went alone 
and the public road had no charms for me, and I took 
to the chaparral, (brush) and rode into Guerrero. 
Just as I entered the town, I rode into a nest of loafers 
and a few soldiers with them, and the scoundrels knew 
me. They cursed me for everything vile, and I pre- 
tended not to understand them, but I understood every 
word they said. I played the ''baby act'' successfully 
and rode on into the town. I strolled around like an 
innocent spectator and finally I came upon a Mexican 
merchant, who was a nice and intelligent man. Then 
I had found a man that I wanted to talk to. He 
thought that there would be no immediate danger of 
any immediate trouble between the two countries and 
assured me that the more intelligent class of Mexican 
citizens were decidedly friendly to us. I could see no 
heavy war clouds around Guerrero, and took to the 
brush like a wild turkey, back to the ferry at Carrizo. 
Then I was under cover of my own guns and the 
*' boys" were watching for me at the bank of the river. 
In a day or two later, I thought I would move camp 
down to Roma, about forty miles below Carrizo, and 
on the morning that I took up march for Roma the 
Mexican soldiers from Guerrero started for Mier, 
opposite Roma, and made the distance in one day on 
foot. They were on the ''Quidad" as well as I was. 
When I had been at Roma a few days and learned the 
cow trails and crossings of the river, I went over to 



98 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

Mier. It was an opportune time, as a big fiesta (a 
fair or feast) was going on there and the presence of 
strangers was expected. Mier was 15 miles from 
Roma. The features of the fair were bull fighting 
and gambling. The Mexican women would walk up 
to a gambling table, place large sums of money on a 
card, and win or lose, and you would not hear a word 
from them. Everything was perfect order in the 
gambling place. The women smoked cigarettes and 
yet they appeared to be perfect ladies. I though it 
was the most wonderful thing that I had ever seen, 
that gambling could be tolerated to an apparent 
point of decency. We learned another feature in 
their realm of society ; when a girl or woman, nurses 
a child of doubtful parentage, it is not considered a 
disgrace, but a misfortune. I have often thought of 
that, that they could wear the mantle of charity with 
more comfort than our own people. Their ideals are 
as widely apart from ours as the poles, consequently 
I don't think we can ever assimilate in one idea of 
government. Altogether, the fair was unique and 
interesting. Ostensibly, we were there attending the 
feast, but our wicked eyes were on other matters as 
well. We surveyed the soldiery, and their equipments. 
Also we were watching for criminals, whose descrip- 
tion we had. We took time to view the historic old 
spot of Mier, where the Santa Fe prisoners drew white 
and black beans, in their lottery for life. There stands 
out, the most noble thing in American history, where 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 99 

one man who had drawn a white bean, giving him his 
liberty offered to swap it to his comrade for a black 
one, that he had drawn, which condemned him to death. 
The man with the black bean was just as brave and 
noble and refused to take the white bean. 

We returned to Eoma, looked after some little mat- 
ters in helping the customs guards, or river guards, 
as they were called, and considered the outlook in gen- 
eral. After having been at Roma about two months 
we concluded that the war scare was a chinook wind, 
and had gotten back to normal temperature. Being 
under a sort of ' ' carte blanche ' ' orders, we moved the 
Company back to Laredo. At Laredo, we found the 
old conditions of bandit trouble still rampant, and 
white men and Mexicans plying their trade, on both 
sides of the river. We were not diplomats, and were 
not sent there for that purpose, but we formed a sort 
of a '* Junta" with the Mexican Major, who was com- 
manding the Mexican soldiers at New Laredo. We 
interpreted our junta into international law, but we 
fear it would not have looked much like it at Wash- 
ington City. I was afraid of our good old Governor 
Roberts, for he was certainly a ''straight edge" but, 
if our doings had been reported to Major Jones, we 
think he would have turned his head in a different 
direction. I think I had some the best of the Mexican 
Major in our treaty. 

The Mexican government had what they called a 
Zona Libre (free belt) extending back one mile into 



100 Eangers and Sovereignty. 

Mexico, from the Rio Grande River. This may have 
been regarding customs duties, but we interpreted it 
to mean '^ catch them if you can, in one mile of the 
river. ' ' The Mexican Major was a shrewd man, and a 
gentleman, and although we had not met each other 
many times, our work was done through agencies. We 
may be telling too much, but, if Uncle Sam wants to 
try us, at this late date, prison life would not cheat 
us out of many years. He would find no documentary 
evidence, and not many witnesses living. If the Mex- 
ican Major is living, we think his government should 
give him a pension. 

Now, we will tell you of some of our crimes. The 
Mexican Major made a scout down the river, on his 
side and found one of the most noted bandits that 
infested that country, and in a running fight with him, 
several miles before he reached the river, failed to get 
him, but as he was swimming the river he shot him, 
wounding him badly, but he reached the Texas side, in 
close proximity to his bandit quarters. The Major sent 
a messenger to me immediately, telling me where he 
had crossed the river and that he had probably reached 
the den of bandits on our side. We sent a scout imme- 
diately down the river, and in the settlement, or ranch, 
where the Major said he crossed, my men found him, 
badly wounded, but brought him up to Laredo, and 
put him in jail. There was an arrest made by the 
Rangers, without a warrant for arrest and on infor- 
mation from the Republic of Mexico. But, we knew 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 101 

the evidence could and would be brought against him, 
to convict him on our side, and if he was not extra- 
dited we would fix him in Texas. 

Shortly after that, a Mexican was coming into New 
Laredo, from the interior of Mexico, with some fancy 
goods to sell at New Laredo, including some very fine 
Mexican hats. He was held up about twenty miles 
from Laredo, and robbed of everything he had by 
Mexicans. He came into Laredo and reported it to 
the Major in command, and he sent him right over 
to me. The Major advised me to send a scout up the 
river, and he would send a scout up the river on his 
side. I sent a scout up the river, and about 25 miles 
above Laredo they came in sight of an old ranch locat- 
ed on the river. When they got near the ranch they 
saw some men running away from the ranch, and 
making for the river. The Rangers ran up to the 
ranch, looked in the old building, and saw some fine 
Mexican hats and other goods in there, which told 
them that those men were the robbers. The Rangers 
put spurs to their horses and made the gravel fly in 
pursuit. They got to the river just as the robbers 
were getting out of the water on Mexican soil. That 
water didn 't stop the Rangers much. They were ' ' onto 
their job". Very soon the bullets began to fly at 
the robbers, and they ran into a chaparral thicket and 
the Rangers kept "fogging" them, until they all quit 
their horses, and took cover through the thick brush. 
Just then the Mexican scout came up from the Mex- 



102 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

ican side. They had heard the firing of the Rangers' 
guns, but were not alarmed about any war in Mexico, 
as they knew what it meant. The Rangers and Mex- 
ican soldiers all came back across to the old ranch, 
and the Rangers were armed of course. They rested 
there together and had a jolly time. The Rangers 
turned over the horses to the Mexican soldiers, that 
they had captured in Mexico, and brought the old Mex- 
ican peddler's goods back to Laredo. He was notified 
that we had his goods, and came over and got them. I 
don't know whether he paid any duty on them or 
not. There stood Fort Mcintosh bristling with dress 
parade, bowed up like a mad bull, waiting for the 
enemy to make a lunge at her. But, the officers of 
the garrison were not to be blamed, as they were only 
machine guns. A few other like incidents made the 
bandits ' ' hard to catch ' ' up and down that river, many 
miles from Laredo. The business men and citizens 
threw their hats in the air over our success. We were 
willing to give the Mexican Major more than half the 
credit, as we could have done but little without his 
help. Thinking our treaty with Mexico will only be 
taken as a joke, we give the people of that border the 
benefit of the joke. The merchants and business men, 
together with a large majority of the citizens wrote and 
signed a petition to Governor Roberts to keep us at 
Laredo. Also, gave me a copy of the petition which I 
have yet. But, there was an intervening order, which 
none of us knew of, which reached us at Laredo, order- 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 103 

ing us back to the northern frontier of Texas. So 
their petition was not acted upon by the Governor. 
Captain Coldwell, who was stationed at Rio Grande 
City, about 100 miles below Laredo, also received 
marching orders, and brought his company up to 
Laredo, and we took up march together back to our 
old stamping ground on the northern border. 

"We will not get out of sight of Laredo without tell- 
ing you something of banking there. Mr. E. J. Hall 
did the principal banking at Laredo. Mr. Hall invited 
us to inspect his bank and pass on its unique features. 
We were not a committee, or any part of one, to look 
after state or national banks, but Hall wanted us to 
enjoy the funny part of it. Mr. Hall had stacks of 
silver, that looked like cord wood, in his counting room, 
and at his pay desk. This was mostly Mexican dollars 
and was hauled there by mule teams. When Texas live 
stock buyers visited the neighborhood of Laredo to 
purchase Mexican stock, they had only to go to Ed. 
Hall's bank, and see how his stock of money was 
holding out. They didn't have to inquire about se- 
curities and the men selling live stock did their own 
inspecting. It was all in sight, and no watered collat- 
erals behind it. The dark and gruesome spectre of 
panics did not bother Mr. Hall. He knew Wall Street, 
and few men knew it better. We took a toddy with 
Mr. Hall, and wished him a long and prosperous ca- 
reer in Rio Grande banking. If there is any moral 
in this, it points to a sound money basis. He had a 



104 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

gold reserve to meet any requirement of gold legis- 
lation, but the *' endless chain" that Grover Cleve- 
land had to contend with, was left to the stalwarts of 
financial juggling. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 105 



On the March 

"We left Laredo under secret orders to move Com- 
pany ''D" to Uvalde County, and to await further 
orders. Guessing was in order, and my men discussed 
the matter around the camp fire, and the topic lasted 
for months. They knew nearly as much about it as 
I did, and developments were slow. I kept my guess 
to myself, which was, that we would not be moved 
too far from the Rio Grande until the low rumblings 
of discontent died out with Mexico. Captain ''Pat" 
Dolan had worked Uvalde County pretty well along 
the line of local disorders, and we could afford to go 
fishing. 

We camped Company "D" twelve miles east of 
Uvalde, on the Sabinal River, and on the mail line 
from San Antonio to Uvalde. Captain Coldwell's Com- 
pany "A" moved on up to the headwaters of Guada- 
lupe River, under command of First Sergeant George 
Arrington. (Mr. Arrington was subsequently commis- 
sioned a captain in the Frontier Battalion.) We were 
somewhat restless in our Sabinal camp. Our training 
had been, under quick orders, and fight for results. 
There were only a few petty artists in that neigh' 
borhood, whose occupation ran down as low as steal- 
ing a pair of hobbles, and we waited on them just to 



106 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

''keep our hands in". We went ''sure enough" fish- 
ing, to the Frio River, eight miles from camp. Mrs. 
Roberts went with us, in the ambulance, together with 
three Rangers. In breaking through thick brush to 
get to a large water hole we knew of we spied a real 
leopard, which seemed to be surveying us as "unde- 
sirable citizens". He appeared to be tame, but we 
didn't try to pet him. We let him go ' ' Scott free ' '. 

When we reached the water, and cast our lines, we 
looked down the river to a shoal and could see an 
object that looked unusual, as we knew that spot quite 
well, from frequent visits there, to a wild turkey roost. 
We laid aside our fish poles, and went to investigate. 
When we got to the object we saw that it was a dead 
man floating on top of the water. We sent Mrs. 
Roberts back to camp, and to get help to take care of 
him. Sergeant L. P. Seiker returned with three or 
four men, and took him out of the water, when he 
found a very large rock tied to his middle, which we 
weighed subsequently, thinking we might need it in 
the possibility of future evidence. The rock weighed 
52 pounds. We had stayed there to try our hand as 
detectives. We surveyed the appearance of things 
in sight, and concluded that the man had been thrown 
off of a big bluff, on the west side of the river, and 
that the rock held him at, or near the bottom, until he 
floated to shallow water and came to the surface. He 
was so bleached by the water that we couldn't tell 
whether he was a white man or a Mexican. We climb- 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 107 

ed up the bluff, on the west side, and were working 
through the thick chaparral brush, when we came 
upon a horse track, leading towards the bluff. There 
we could plainly see where the man was thrown off 
the bluff. We examined closely, and could see where 
the man had brushed the dirt bank, in falling some 
twelve feet to the water. In looking closely we saw a 
large butcher knife lodged in some little roots near the 
water. How I should get that knife without swim- 
ming confronted me with doubt. I could see some 
little twigs, growing in the dirt bank and I thought 
I would risk holding to those, and if I went in, it would 
be the "whole hog" with my clothes on. I held on to 
those twigs, ''with fear and trembling", until I reach- 
ed the knife, and threw it on top of the bank. I 
crawled up again to footing and examined the knife. 
It had a wooden handle, and on the handle some cat- 
tle brands were cut, the insignia of where the knife 
belonged. I back-tracked the horse to a big road 
that led up to Dillard's ranch, about two and a half 
miles from the river; then I had brought mystery to 
a more reasonable conclusion, that that ranch could 
tell something about it. I sent Sergeant L. P. Seiker 
to the ranch with three men, and told him to arrest 
every man on that ranch, and we would see if the 
old maxim would work, that "murder will out". I 
knew that Sergeant Seiker could "pull them" if any 
other man could. He arrested every man that he 
could find on the ranch, and they looked phenomenally 



108 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

wild. Seiker told them what he had found, and 
tracked it to their door and told them that they better 
"fessup". He was using a "writ of rouster", but 
it worked all right. Finally a Mexican stepped up, 
and said "I am the man that killed him". Then his 
explanation followed. The man that was killed was 
a Mexican. The man that had killed him had bought 
some horses from him, which all proved to be stolen 
horses, and were taken from him. The Mexican that 
was killed had brought another bunch of horses to sell 
him, but, he was so mad over the first transaction 
that he took his gun and shot him. The horses he 
brought the last time were there for inspection. We 
looked them over and found a fine buggy horse that 
belonged to Joe Rogers who was a friend of mine, 
and lived near Austin. We knew the horse, as well 
as our own saddle horses, and when we saw him we 
said ' ' good shot ' \ But, Sergeant Seiker took the Mex- 
ican, and the Dillard boys up to Uvalde, put the Mex- 
ican under bond to await the action of the grand jury. 
We whispered to the boys, ''Don't appear against 
them," and that ended it. 

We ''wintered" in 1878, on Sabinal River, and 
when spring came we began to feel like loafers. But, 
we were soon relieved of monotony. Matters on the 
northern border, and in our old district, were coming 
to life, on a basis of murder and pillage. So we got 
"double quick" orders to go back there. My boys felt 
like lazy school boys that enjoy a good recess. They 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 109 

whooped and yelled, and flew at the wagons and pack 
mules and we were soon on the march for the head of 
the San Saba River, some 250 miles from Sabinal. 
Within a few days' march, we began to reach our 
"volunteer reserve". My men could borrow a suit 
of clothes, a horse and saddle, or anything a ranch 
had. And in some tough little fights, you could 
hardly tell who were Rangers and who were not. But, 
it was all for the State of Texas. We wore no uniform, 
except that of citizens and there was no "making 
faces" at each other, as between the citizens and 
uniformed soldiers. We struck camp four miles below 
Fort McKavett, on the San Saba River. And after 
regulating camp matters, securing supplies and for- 
age, and the routine, we will soon hand you something 
from the frontier "bulletin board". We may not 
give the dates correctly, but, from first to last, are 
our most important dates, covering our whole service. 



Rangers and Sovereigntt. Ill 



Fort Davis Scout 

About the 25th of June, 1880, I got a telegram from 
Judge Frazier, coming from Fort Stockton, Texas, 
asking for help. Stockton was 250 miles from our 
camp. The sense of this telegram was that five men 
had robbed the merchants and "sacked" the town of 
money and all valuables that they wanted and had 
gone on up to Fort Davis, repeating the same thing 
there. Fort Davis was garrisoned by several com- 
panies of U. S. soldiers. The citizens could get no 
help from them as they could only act as a ''posse 
committatus". The Rangers issued a kind of a writ 
they called ''Veni, Vidi, Vici," I believe that means 
"I came, I saw, I conquered." 

They arrested some of the county officials and put 
their own men to guard the jail. My only having 
detailed seven men to go with Sergeant Ed. Seiker, 
who was in charge of the scout, made eight men in 
all, but Sergeant Caruthers, of the Ranger force, had 
come as fast as the mail hack could bring him, from 
the City of Austin, and joined my men at Fort Davis, 
making nine all told. The robbers were the last of the 
''Billy the Kid" bunch, that had operated in New 
Mexico. Their names were Jesse Evans, John Gunter 
and three of the Davis brothers. But they had so 



112 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

many aliases that identity by name was impossible, 
but they passed by these names in New Mexico. They 
had left Fort Davis a day or two before my men got 
there and the Rangers found out that they went west. 
Sergeant Seiker divided his men at Davis, leaving pri- 
vate Miller, E. J. Pound, "Nick" Brown and Henry 
Thomas to guard the jail. Sergeant Ed. Seiker took 
five men with him, who were R. R. Russell, D. T. 
Carson, S. A. Henry, Sergeant Caruthers and George 
Bingham, also a Mexican guide. They left Fort Davis 
at 9 p. m. and at 1 p. m. the next day came in sight 
of the robbers. They were about a mile ahead of the 
Rangers and the boys being eager to get to them struck 
a little faster gait, which move caused the robbers to 
leave the road they were on and strike for a canon 
some distance from the road. The Rangers seeing 
that, started straight for them at good speed. The 
bandits reached the gulch first and dismounted and 
took shelter behind big rocks which fringed the break 
of the gulch. Sergeant Seiker, R. R. Russell, D. T. 
Carson and George R. Bingham were the only ones 
riding Ranger horses and the others could not keep 
up. So the fight fell on Seiker, Carson, Russell and 
Bingham. As the Rangers approached, firing com- 
menced from behind those rocks, two bullets striking 
Carson's horse and one through the brim of his hat, 
and Bingham was shot dead. Carson, Seiker and Rus- 
sell dismounted, and as George Davis showed up from 
behind a rock to shoot. Sergeant Seiker and Carson 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 113 

fired at him almost simultaneously, Seiker's bullet 
striking him in the breast and as he fell Carson's 
bullet went through his head. The other bandits, 
seeing the quick work of the Rangers, knew some more 
of them had to go, and they broke and ran under the 
bluff, out of sight from the Rangers and got under 
some shelving rocks. 

The Rangers were hunting them like blood hounds 
and one of them yelled out that they would surrender, 
if they, the Rangers, would not hurt them. Sergeant 
Seiker told them to come out. They came out, gave 
up their arms, and were taken back to where the fir- 
ing commenced, and just then the Mexican guide came 
up and told them that one of their men was killed. 
They had not missed poor Bingham, who was lying 
dead, not over seventy-five yards from them. He 
being behind when they ran up into the fight and re- 
ceiving a dead shot. The Rangers were so furious 
over losing one of their comrades, that cartridges 
began to fly into their guns almost automatically, to 
finish them up, while the poor devils were begging 
for life. R. R. Russell was the first man to throw a 
cartridge into his gun barrel, and the first man to say 
''don't kill them." 

Mr. Russell is now President of the State Bank and 
Trust Company, in San Antonio, Texas, and is reputed 
to be worth nearly two million dollars. "Dick" Rus- 
sell doesn't think that he was any better than Bing- 
ham, Sergeant Seiker or D. T. Carson, who are all 



114 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

dead, but remembers them with that fellow feeling 
and friendship that characterizes God's most noble 
men. 

This fight occurred on the 3rd day of July, 1880. 
They buried the dead on July 4th, on the road from 
Fort Davis to Paso Del Norte, 18 miles from the Rio 
Grande. The citizens of Fort Davis gave the Rangers 
on their return to jail with those prisoners, $500.00 
in cash and the citizens of Fort Stockton gave them 
$600.00 in cash. The Rangers didn't consider that a 
pay job, but received the money thankfully. The cit- 
izens appeared to think that nothing was too good for 
those poor tired and hungry boys that had put in night 
and day on that long scout to protect them. On return 
of the Rangers to Fort Davis they arrested John 
Selman, who was jailer there. Selman was the man 
who killed John Wesley Hardin, some years later. So 
you can see that County Judge Frazier and the Ran- 
gers wrought a mighty change there in a short time. 
The prisoners were not allowed bond and were kept in 
jail at Fort Davis until district court set. The grand 
jury found bills against them. By this time the Davis 
brothers had to disclose their true identity, as they had 
to have help. Their parents lived in Texas and were 
highly respected and wealthy. But, for their sake, we 
with-hold their right names from further publicity. 
We let them go to trial under their robber aliases. 
John Gunter and Jesse Evans were tried under those 
names and received long terms in the penitentiary. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 115 

The Davis brothers managed to get bonds, by putting 
off trial and the bonds were forfeited and paid, and 
that ended their trial. The trial judge is dead and 
gone and we will say nothing more about it. The men 
that were in that scout are all dead, except R. R. Rus- 
sell, who lives in San Antonio, Texas; S. A. Henry, 
who lives on Nueces River in Edwards County, and 
Sergeant Caruthers, near Alpine, in Brewster County. 
Those three should have a reunion, in memory of the 
silent dead that served on that scout. They broke up 
the most noted band of outlaws that ever infested 
any state or country. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 117 



The Potter Scout— 1880 

I had not been in camp many days, when a messen- 
ger arrived from 30 or 40 miles west, who had come 
through torrents of rain, to inform me that his ranch 
and neighbors had lost a number of horses, and he 
was satisfied that white men had stolen them. This 
messenger was ' ' Sam ' ' Merk, and came of his own voli- 
tion. "Sam" was one of my standbys, to help me. I 
detailed a scout to go back with Merk to find the trail, 
which I knew would be difficult, on account of the 
rain having put it out. The detail numbered seven 
men, as follows : Sergeant R. G. Kimble, in charge of 
scout, N. J. Brown, Ed. Dozier, William Dunman, J. 
V. Latham, R, C. Roberts and Mc. Smith. When 
the scout was ready to move, I told them to ''catch 
them if they stayed on top of the ground". This was 
not exactly an order, but rather bad advice, as I had 
not considered state lines. It dawned upon me a little 
later that we were state troops. I was a little "skit- 
tish" on that score, just having been "rounded up" 
pretty hard, by our good old Governor Roberts, for 
an incident that occurred, involving international law. 
I will tell it, before resuming the scout. Sergeant J. 
B. Gillette, was on detached service, on the Rio Grande, 
and at El Paso. He was notified by the civil author- 



118 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

ities at Socorro, New Mexico, that a certain Mexican, 
giving liis name and description had killed an editor 
at Socorro, and fled to Mexico. Gillette, incidentally 
took a little "paseow" into Mexico and finding the 
man lured him to American soil, on this side, Gillette 
nailed him and wired Socorro that he would be up 
with him, on a certain train. The train was held up 
by a mob within a mile of Socorro, the man taken 
from Gillette, and hanged to a cottonwood tree. The 
Mexican consul at Washington, pounced upon Gov- 
ernor Roberts, for a genuine case of kidnapping. Our 
Governor replied, if Sergeant Gillette did that, he was 
responsible for it, as it was by no authority of the 
state. While I had nothing to do with it, the Old 
Alcalde (Governor Roberts) took me to task. He gave 
me the name and address of every extradition officer 
on the Rio Grande and in sentences, that savored of 
whole spice, he told me, to ''not let such a thing as 
that occur again". 1 took it like a little boy that had 
been stealing watermelons, and was glad to get off 
that way. Gillette didn't belong to my Company at 
that time. 

Now, we resume the scout. The scout could get no 
trail of them, where the stock was taken, but guessing 
the course they would take, the scout bore a little north 
of west, in the direction of old Fort Lancaster, on 
Live Oak Creek, near its junction with the Pecos 
River. When the scout reached Fort Lancaster, they 
heard of the men, passing there with the horses. But, 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 119 

they rode two or three days behind them. The scout 
pushed on up the Pecos several days, being on their 
trail ; most of their horses were beginning to fail, and 
Sergeant Kimble left five of the men near Horsehead 
crossing on the Pecos and took William Dunman with 
him and followed on. About 150 miles up the Pecos, 
they came to the Hashknif e ranch, finding Billy Smith 
there in charge, he giving them information that the 
men had passed there with the horses, and finding 
they had gained on them pretty well, they felt en- 
couraged; their horses were "done up". Billy Smith 
rounded up three of the best horses on the ranch, and 
went with them in pursuit, after traveling up the river 
a long distance, they noticed that the trail had quit 
the road. Thinking they had passed them, they turn- 
ed back down the road to pick up the trail; hadn't 
traveled far, when they saw them coming to meet 
them. Sergeant Kimble thought that the parties 
would know him, and he quickly planned the attack. 
He was right, as they proved to be Jim and John 
Potter, both knew Kimble well. Kimble told Dunman 
and Billy Smith to slow up a little, and he would ride 
more brisk, so as to cover the space between them, as 
one of them was riding ahead of the horses, and the 
other behind them, making about 50 yards between 
them, and they could ''come down" on them both at 
once. Kimble pulled his hat down a little, over his 
face, and passed Jim Potter, and went on to John, 
and ' ' pulled down ' ' on him, demanding his surrender. 



120 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

At that moment firing commenced between Jim Potter, 
Dunman and Smith, and Potter pulling at the breech 
of his gun, which was in a scabbard, to his saddle, 
Kimble telling him to turn it loose, or he would kill 
him. John jumped off his horse, still pulling at the 
gun, and Kimble shot him. Sergeant Kimble looked 
around, at the other end of the fight, when he saw 
Jim Potter down with three bullet holes in him, and 
Smith and Dunman 's horses both shot. Just then a 
strange coincidence came in : Frank Potter, a brother 
of Jim and John Potter, heard the firing, and came 
to them, finding his brothers both shot down, but not 
dead. It is a certain fact that the Potters knew noth- 
ing of the whereabouts of each other. Frank Potter 
was a very good man, and was working on a cattle 
ranch some miles away. Jim and John were removed 
to a ranch, some eight or ten miles away, and Frank 
helped to take care of them, until "Jim" died, two 
days later, and the Rangers took John to Fort Davis 
for treatment, where he finally recovered. They 
brought John back to Kimble County, and I turned 
him over to the sheriff, and he took him to San Antonio 
jail, for safe keeping. When district court set, in 
Kimble County, the sheriff, Joe Clemens, went after 
him, and returning with him, at the head of the Gua- 
dalupe River a mob over-powered Sheriff Clemens 
and shot Potter to death. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 121 



Waiting on the Courts 

Our activity in putting down cattle theft, mail rob- 
bery, and all kinds of lawlessness, entailed upon us 
nearly the whole duty of re-establishing civil govern- 
ment, in the frontier districts. Consequently, our 
appearance in the district courts, against criminals, 
became a necessity. We waited on all courts, except 
the kangaroo variety and even instituted that in camp. 
We hardly knew whether we were Rangers, or court 
officers. The number of arrests we made could not 
be enumerated without our adjutant general's reports. 
We gained the ill-will of all evil-doers, and they were 
our bitter enemies. We began to think that we could 
tell, when we made an arrest, whether the man was 
guilty or not. If he belonged to the '^ Buckskin Joe" 
class, he would begin to chant some little song, of 
''wild and wooly" origin, which would tell the com- 
pany he had been in. If, on the other hand, he was 
shrewd, and capable of doing big mischief, he would 
deport himself nearly like a gentleman, as the cir- 
cumstances would admit of, but, his linking himself up 
up with legitimate business and responsible men, was 
where he "fell down". The class of Texas criminals 
in those days, was different to what they are now. In 
those days, they had collected on the frontier, in 



122 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

numbers to defy the law, and instituted plans that 
would protect them from the law. Since the advent of 
the railroad we first got the ''tramp", and we must 
say, that name is an unfair ephithet, applied to poor 
men, out of employment, whether they are indigent 
of unfortunate. The professional tramp is the spawn 
of crowded cities, bred under conditions that were 
foreign to American spirit, and simply made him a 
creature, hunting sustenance to satisfy hunger. Next 
came the professionals, burglars, cracksmen, robbers, 
and ''hold-ups" of every description, that were run 
away from municipal governments of large cities. 
Texas was not as good a field as they had supposed, 
owing to the vast territory the state covered, and no 
big cities to shelter them from identity, as almost 
every man knows his neighbor, and strangers were 
"spotted" without difficulty. So, after getting rid 
of the original Texas outlaw, the Eastern aftermath 
has been "handled with care" with Pandora's box 
labeled ' ' this side up ' '. While Texas is not entirely 
immune from evil, or infractions of law, we believe 
she is the peer of any state, along the line of good 
government. 

If the Rangers can claim a small part in this, it 
reverts back to the state which maintained that service. 
We can only claim a modest share as citizens. Our 
work may have some merit, in handling the Indian 
trouble, and we leave the citizens of the frontier, and 
progress of the state to answer for us. We set out to 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 123 

record the services of Company "D" Frontier Bat- 
talion, but not to particularize our company as being 
most prominent. We were in possession of the correct 
data of our own work, and have partially given it, 
in simple justice to the brave men that served with us. 
There were five other companies in the Frontier Bat- 
talion, and that each of them did good service, is not 
left to criticism, but to their several honorable records. 
Company ' ' D " survived our resignation from the ser- 
vice, and did splendid work along old lines, until it 
was minimized by niggardly appropriations, and 
could hardly maintain a ' ' corporal guard ' '. The spirit 
was in the men, but the handicap ruled them down to 
such subordination, that they lost the prestige of doing 
things in the Ranger way. They did fine service, as 
only a small auxiliary branch of the civil government, 
but lost the lead, as a state force. The state was right 
in this, as the Ranger service had served the splendid 
purpose for which it was organized, at least to the 
extent that put the border counties safely in the hands 
of their civil officers. But the state showed her grati- 
tude, in almost a pathetic way, by preserving the name 
Ranger, in allowing a small organization to exist under 
that name. This involves a fine point, allowing the 
Rangers to be a military organization, which ' ' cropped 
out ' ' in the present Mexico troubles. If they are only 
state troops, their work is preceeding martial law. We 
take it, that their work can only follow in the wake 
of civil authority, unless they are declared militia. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 125 



Pegleg Stage Robbing — 1880 

There was a stage station, on the San Saba River, 
on the Fort Mason and Fort McKavett road, the dis- 
tance being about 80 miles, between Mason and Mc- 
Kavett, and Pegleg was just half way between the two. 
A series of stage robbing, had been kept up, near 
Pegleg station for a long time, and the robbers had 
not been apprehended. 

We detailed a man, to go with the stage coach while 
passing this notorious piece of road ; and he would lie 
down on top of the coach, with a double barreled shot 
gun, in his grip, to await developments. The stage 
driver didn't dare to make a fight with the robbers, 
and the passengers were generally unarmed. No stage 
robbing occurred, for a considerable time, and we con- 
cluded that the real robbers, had been informed of 
what was going on. We recalled the Ranger from 
his lofty perch on the coach. But little time had pass- 
ed when the stage was robbed again near Pegleg. This 
time there were several passengers on the coach, includ- 
ing an officer of the U. S. army. This officer was 
plucky, and tried to make a fight on them with a little 
38 calibre pistol, which would only have served to get 
him killed. The other passengers had to take hold of 
him, to stop him, as they thought it would cause all 



126 Rangers and Soatereignty. 

of them to be killed. Only two robbers appeared. 
The robbers "went through" the passengers, then cut 
open the mail sacks, and took all valuables to be found. 
The drivers thought it was not much use to sew up the 
mail sacks, as it was costing "Uncle Sam" too much 
to furnish them. The officer lost some money, his little 
shooter, and other things valuable to him. When the 
stage came up opposite my camp, this officer sent me a 
list, description of the things taken from the pas- 
sengers. 

I thought it not much use to lose twenty miles riding 
to pick up a cold trail, and I took four men with me, 
and started due east, to "cut sign". After I had 
traveled six or eight miles, I saw four men riding 
straight across my course, and going north. I thought 
I had them. I bore in slightly towards them. I saw 
them fixing their guns for business, but I made no 
demonstration to show them that I saw it. I got up 
in talking distance of them, and knew them, which 
confirmed it more with me, that they were the right 
men. I "jollied" them a little, but kept gaining on 
them. I saw they had their guns across their saddles, 
in front of them. They were riding in a straight 
breast, with their thumbs on the hammers of their 
guns. I tried to engage them in "very pleasant con- 
versation ' '. A man named Jackson was riding on the 
left of their breast, thumb on the hammer of his gun, 
and I knew he was a bad "hombre". I rode up nearly 
to his side, but was careful to not get before the muzzle 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 127 

of his gun, and almost as quick as lightning, I jerked 
my pistol and shoved it against him, telling him to turn 
that gun loose, or I would kill him. At the same in- 
stant, my men covered them from the rear. Jackson 
was stubborn, and held to his gun until he could almost 
feel my bullet, when his hands limbered and his cour- 
age likewise. 

I made them dismount, and made them take their 
clothes off down to stockings, and examined them 
carefully for the articles missing from the stage pas- 
sengers. They had some sacks, tied to their saddles 
which were full of clothing, all new. I could find 
nothing that came off the stage. I fired off their guns, 
told them to dress, which they did, and in meantime, 
I was figuring what to do with them. 

I knew I had arrested them without a warrant, and 
an idea struck me. I told them if they would leave 
that country, and never bother me, or people living 
there again, I would turn them loose. This brightened 
them up, almost to a feeling of friendship, and they 
promised me that they would leave for ' 'keeps". They 
did leave, and were not seen there any more. And 
the Pegleg stage was not robbed any more. 

My theory was, (after I found out they had robbed 
a store, south of there, securing the goods I found in 
their sacks) that, they had failed to connect with the 
two that robbed the mail, but had to get away from 
there just the same. After we parted, we viewing their 
backs, until they were out of gun shot, one of my 



128 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

**boys" began to laugh. He had found a name for 
me. He called me "Pecos Bob". Pecos Bob was a 
character that prided himself on ''drawing first and 
getting the drop on his victim". (Pecos Bob, was 
Bob Ollinger). My men joked me pretty much as 
they pleased, for they had to, in self defense. My 
dignity, as an officer, only reached to positive orders, 
that were obeyed to a letter, and after that, my men 
and myself met on a common plane of friendship. 

Along this line of work, Major Jones once made 
what we called a ' ' round up " in a locality where those 
fellows almost had their sway. And by a concerted 
move, which was done in one day, every man that 
could be found, was brought to camp. The better 
people of that section didn't object to this, and the 
worse ones, being in the ''herd" had little grounds 
for objections, as all fared alike. The Major with his 
keen sagacity and knowledge of them, enabled him to 
sort them out to the "Queen's taste". That move 
made economy in work, and alarmed the whole fra- 
ternity of evil-doers. They didn't know but what 
Colonel Roy Bean's law, (law west of the Pecos) had 
prevailed all over the state. It was not exactly mar- 
tial law, but a kind of "writ of rouster". Company 
"D" was used for this job, the Company was then 
under the command of Lieutenant Frank Moore. The 
"bad men" didn't know what to look for next, and 
began to strike for "tall timber". The Pecos country, 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 129 

New Mexico and Arizona caught an unenviable lot of 
them. 

By this time, we were getting the support of the 
best citizens, and their untiring help almost put them 
in the ranks of the Rangers. Our camp was their 
headquarters, and their homes were our welcome rest- 
ing places. They furnished us anything that our tem- 
porary needs might call for, without any charge 
against the state, and many a hungry Ranger shared 
their hospitality. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 131 



Stealing Saddles 

While we were encamped in Kimble County, my 
*'boys" had become a little "gay" as society men, and 
attended the numerous dances given by the citizens, 
where they were welcome and received marked atten- 
tion. On one occasion, of a great baile, I gave permis- 
sion to four of my men to attend the dance. I could 
hear expressions in camp of certain young ladies, 
being ''about the idea" of the Rangers, as about all 
that was beautiful and proper, and in turn the young 
ladies had conferred upon them degrees of knight- 
hood that would put the Arabians to flight. This 
dance was given at Junction City, in Kimble County, 
eight miles south of my camp. Deputy Sheriff Joe 
Clemens made my camp his business headquarters, 
and on this occasion he went to the dance with my men. 
They tied their horses all together, leaving their 
saddles on the horses and left no guard with them. 
They brushed up their suits, and adjusted collars, 
and went to the ball room as gay as larks. They real- 
ized their visions of pleasure, until just before day- 
light, when they returned to their horses, to come to 
camp. Lo and behold, two of the Rangers had lost 
their saddles, and Sheriff Clemens had lost his. It was 
fortunate they could get out of town before daylight. 



132 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

to cover the humiliation they felt. Sheriff Clemens 
came to camp with them, and of all the crestfallen 
*'boys" they looked the worst. Clemens was to break 
the news to me, which he did, and he shared fully the 
discomfort of the Rangers. I tried to look "sour" 
about it, but my amusement was too great. There 
were certain parties in the country there, whom I had 
put under my ban of suspicion, and they were con- 
stantly so, notwithstanding their galvanized appear- 
ance. I questioned Sheriff Clemens, as to whom he 
had seen in the town that night. He told me of the 
outsiders that he had noticed; of course they would 
not come into the ball room, except to peep in, so as 
to locate the Rangers. I told Clemens to stay right 
there in camp that day and to make no demonstrations 
of search to create any excitement, and when night 
came to come with me and we would get the saddles. 
This statement seemed to astound him. Mr. Clemens 
was a ranchman, as well as sheriff, and knew every 
cow trail in that vicinity. I knew that the parties 
who stole the saddles would leave a spy at Junction 
City, to see what would be done, and to inform the 
others, if they were in danger. Just after dark, I 
took five men with me, including the two men that had 
lost their saddles, so that they could identify their 
saddles, also Sheriff Clemens went with me. We 
passed around the town of Junction City, so that no 
one would see us, and crossed the Llano River to the 
south and gained a high ridge, or divide, running 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 133 

west, in the direction I wanted to go, to get to the 
camp of the parties I suspected, the distance being 
fifteen or twenty miles from Junction City. "We 
reached one of the camps just before daylight, and 
went in on them in the innocent occupation of sleep. 
We found one of the men there that I had suspected ; 
we invited him out to take breakfast with us, and 
the invitation was so pressing that he didn't resist it. 
We took him about one and a half miles west, to 
where a road passed up Chalk Creek, running up to 
these camps from the Llano River, and from the main 
road that ran up the River. We stopped on the road 
to get breakfast and put out a picket above, and below 
us on the road, with orders to bring anyone to camp 
that might pass that way. Of course, this was simple 
hospitality, to give them breakfast, but it was not 
an appetizer to some of them. One of the pickets 
brought Charles Beardsley up to breakfast. I knew 
Mr. Beardsley had been with Hensley, the first man 
captured, and his early mission was to give the news, 
of what was going on at Junction City. I could get 
nothing out of Hensley regarding the saddles. After 
we had breakfast, I told three of my men to stay 
there at the camp fire with Beardsley, and I would 
take Hensley up into a little cedar brake, close by, 
and after I was out of sight to fire off their guns, 
and turn Beardsley loose, and come on up to where 
I was, which was done according to orders. Hensley 
heard the firing of the guns, and looked at me with 



134 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

a chilly sensation and said to me ' ' Captain, they have 
killed that man". I didn't answer him directly, but 
said to him : ' ' Now if you know anything about those 
saddles, you had better tell it quick". I saw his lips 
began to quiver, and the tears began to trickle down 
his cheeks, when he said to me, "Captain, if you 
will let me go, and not punish me, I will show you 
the saddles". He was only eighteen or nineteen 
years old, and looked like he would be a better boy, 
in different company. So I told him I would turn him 
loose if he showed up the saddles, provided, that he 
would leave there, and quit the company he was in. 
He assured me that he would leave immediately, and 
go east to his home, and stay there. He took us to 
the saddles, which were hidden in a big shinoak thicket, 
not far from where we found him, and the saddles 
looked like they could almost speak the praise of 
redemption. We put the saddles on the packmule, 
and went down into the public road that passed up 
the river from Junction, and Sheriff Clemens was 
riding with me, and after some silence he said "I'll 
be d — d if this don't beat anything I ever saw". We 
had not gone far down the road, when we met the 
principal actor in the saddle stealing, who had stayed 
back, at Junction, "to listen for thunder". We want- 
ed him anyway, and took him back with the saddles. 
My boys that lost the saddles were very tender on the 
subject, and it would have been absolutely cruel to 
have teased them about it. Beardsley told subse- 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 135 

quently that my men shot at him, and one of the men, 
whose saddle was stolen sent him word that if he didn 't 
stop that lying "he would wear him out with a quirt". 
The man we brought back with the saddles was not 
tried for saddle stealing, but was sentenced to a two 
year term in the penitentiary for cattle stealing, but 
made his escape, with irons on him, and was not ap- 
prehended afterwards. 



Rangers and Soverbigntt. 137 



Cattle Stealing 

A few days after the saddle raid, a Mr. Evans, who 
lived in Mason County, reported to me that he had 
lost all his cattle, including his work oxen and in all 
had lost fifty-three head ; he said the trail of the cattle 
had started west. I took a scout immediately and 
* ' cut sign ' ' for the trail ; I found the trail, going west, 
and followed it, as rapidly as I could, but could not 
find anyone, who had seen the parties, or the cattle. 
The trail went up the South Llano River, for 25 miles, 
then bore south, to the head of the Frio River, that 
was called Frio water hole ; after watering there, they 
struck straight west, to the head of the Nueces River. 
I was not far behind them at the Frio water hole. I 
could give a good guess then where they were taking 
the cattle. Fort Clark, near the Rio Grande was then 
a good market for butchers ' cattle, and I was satisfied 
they were taking them there. We pushed on the trail, 
until about three o'clock in the evening, when we 
reached the head of the Nueces River. The trail took 
down the old Fort Clark road, running down the river, 
and we were close to them; within an hour's march, 
we were in sight of the dust, caused by driving the 
cattle. The road ran through a dense growth of cedar, 
and shinoak brush, and our chance to get the men 



138 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

was to catch them in some open space. We slowed up, 
and watched for this chance, until they drove down 
into the bed of the river, where the road crossed, then 
we put spurs to our horses and ran in on them, before 
they could cross, and captured them in the bed of the 
river. One of them tried to make a run, but we round- 
ed him up, before he got to the lead of the cattle. 
There were only two men driving the cattle; one of 
them called himself Kiser ; the other one we knew, and 
was satisfied that Kiser had gotten him into the steal- 
ing, as he was only 17 or 18 years old. I knew we 
could not get out of that brush that evening, with a 
lot of sore-footed and tired cattle, but drove back as 
far as we could, and camped for the night. Mr. Amon 
Billings happened to come by camp, and said he could 
get us some feed for our horses, before midnight, which 
he did. We '* hog-tied" Seiior Kiser, with a rope and 
kept a guard over them that night, and managed to 
keep all our stock until daylight, after which, we soon 
reached the open country. We were four days getting 
back to camp, with the cattle and prisoners. We 
notified Mr. Evans to come and get his cattle, and to 
say he was a proud man, was barely expressing it, as 
it was about all the poor man had. Court was in 
session at Junction City, and Kiser was sent to the 
penitentiary for a long term, but escaped from the 
"pen" after serving only a short while. Kiser took 
the trouble to tell me that he would kill me, if he had 
to follow to the ''end of the world". I paid no at- 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 139 

tention to his threat ; soon after this, I moved my camp 
back to the San Saba River. My own quarters were 
about 100 yards from the main Ranger camp, and 
facing it. One night, after my wife and myself had 
retired, some one rode up to the back of my tent, and 
hailed two or three times. I whispered to my wife 
to keep still. I reached for my gun, which I always 
had in reach, and quietly stepped out of the tent, and 
came around the tent, rather opposite from the open 
way, with my gun ready to fire, when he whirled his 
horse and ran off, muttering some low ''cuss words" 
as he went. He must have seen the muzzle of my gun 
coming, in advance of his intended victim. I tracked 
him next morning, to where he went into the Fort 
McKavett road and from his horse tracks he had 
lost no time. There was a big bright guard fire, in 
the Ranger camp, and I knew if it was anyone on 
square business, they would have gone to the guard 
first. I have always felt certain it was Kiser, but 
his nerve was not as good as he thought it was. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 141 



Mavericks 



In the early days of Texas, say from 1845 to 1860, 
the cattle men worked together, in perfect harmony, 
and to each other's interest. Mr. "Sam" Maverick 
was probably the largest cattle owner in the state, 
at that time. So large was the area of his cattle range, 
that he could hardly get over it in one season to 
mark and brand his calves. Mr. Maverick was a 
wealthy and influential man, and the small cattle own- 
ers looked out for his interest, together with their own. 
Texas had enacted a law, that any animal, of bovine 
kind, was public property, after it became one year 
old, and was not marked or branded, and was not 
following its mother. This was a bad law, but it was 
the law, just the same. When the cattle men were 
working their respective ranges, and came upon a 
yearling that was not marked or branded, they gener- 
ally conceded it belonged to Mr. Maverick. So com- 
mon was the expression, Maverick, that they applied 
it straight to the animal, hence, an unmarked animal 
was a Maverick. The term Maverick became so com- 
mon over the state that it was indeed general. The 
stock men tried to stay by the law, but so many men 
that had become handy with the rope, saw their ad- 
vantage, and would take a yearling from its mother. 



142 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

although it might be sucking her, and call it a mav- 
erick. Such men had but little invested in cattle, but 
would mark out a brand in the road if they had no 
paper to mark it on, and push cattle operations to 
an extent that would soon show that they were *'in 
\V\ Then, the fault of the law became glaring, and 
the Texas Legislators had to substitute criminal 
clauses in lieu of their "slip shod" liberality in the 
first law, allowing a yearling to be public property, 
provided it was not marked or branded. 

Mr. W. J. Bryan's great expression, coined by him- 
self, a "twdlight zone" had not come into verbal use, 
in those days but it was certainly in practical use by 
cattle "rustlers" to cover their deeds by law, anent 
open stealing. But, broad open daylight stealing was 
the sequel of the mooted controversy. The legitimate 
cattle owners were the sufferers. In 1861, when the 
war between the states had become a bloody battle that 
called for all able bodied men to enter the service, the 
State of Texas was literally covered wdth cattle, and 
their owners being called away, left their cattle to 
roam where they might, and without attention. Those 
of the ranchmen that returned home after the war, 
found their cattle scattered to the "four winds" and 
hundreds of them were three and four years old, 
without a mark or brand. This was particularly the 
case on the frontier of Texas. The rightful owners 
could not identify this unmarked stock, and they be- 
came public property again. This invited every man 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 143 

that could get a few ponies and ropes, to enter the 
field, as though he was really a cattle owner, and 
according to his energy in the work, he succeeded in 
branding a very good herd in a short time. There was 
no market for cattle in Texas, and we have known par- 
ties to corral big numbers of cattle and kill them for 
the hides. A plug of tobacco was a standard price 
for a good yearling. Kansas soon opened up as a 
cattle market, and driving herds to Kansas, started 
up the cattle business again. John Chisum opened 
up the Chisum trail to Kansas, over which many 
herds were driven. The cattle industry was then in 
the lead of cotton, and about the only source to get 
money to repair war losses. The man who could have 
reaped the greatest benefit out of cattle, by rightful 
ownership, could only hold their original branded 
stock, (and hardly that) on account of the conditions 
that had grown up beyond their control. Many large 
farmers, who had depended on negro labor, found 
themselves without an occupation, and some of them 
went into the cattle business. Such men generally 
*'made good", but they were ''up against" the ''sys- 
tem" of handling cattle, which, in many cases, 
amounted to open stealing. Such conditions had en- 
ticed many men to come out on the frontier, who 
didn't own cattle, but could manipulate cattle "rust- 
lers" to great advantage. They soon organized "jun- 
tas" that defied civil law, and the matter grew from 
bad to worse, until the armed power of the state had 



144 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

to be employed to stop it. The civil officers of the 
sparsely settled counties, could not handle them. This 
put the Rangers after the rustlers, which took a big 
part of their time, outside of fighting Indians and 
other enemies to the cattle men. The "cow men" re- 
sponded to our efforts like warriors and often faced 
the bullets with us, against the common enemy. 

Thus, you will see, that after a cattle man had 
earned what he had, he had to fight to keep it. But, 
the power of the state, combining the splendid indi- 
vidual effort of the cattle men, sustained the industry, 
and it still ranks as one of the greatest industries in 
the State of Texas. When cotton fails, as a money 
crop, cattle stands between the people and the black 
Ghost of Panic, and sustains Texas, as one of the great- 
est states of the Union. We know but little of the 
methods of the Stockraisers ' Association, but, we do 
know that organized effort is the winning card in 
modern business ventures. We remember the first 
effort of the farmers, who organized what they called 
a Grange, which was later merged into the famous 
Alliance. That was to protect the farmer from an 
undue tax, levied on them, by commercialism and the 
wily middleman, who stood between the producer and 
his market, as a sinecure, that neither produced, or 
consumed, more than to keep individual selfishness 
alive. So it is with the stockraiser. He can not afford 
to be at the mercy of organized capital, which is sim- 
ply waiting to dictate to him, what per cent he shall 
get out of his toil. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 145 



The Killing of Sam Bass 

Major John B. Jones had been making a trap for 
Sam Bass and his band for several years, and when the 
trap was finished and the triggers set, it proved to 
be a dead fall. Sam Bass was from Indiana and came 
to Texas and made his headquarters in Denton County 
and in the town of Denton, Texas. He was said to be 
a man of pleasant address and closely counterfeited 
a gentleman. He studied men and their character 
more than business and soon found a few that would 
work well in his cabinet. He, however, didn't believe 
distributing his patronage to many, as a grave trust, 
in his line, demanded men of steel nerve. He enlisted 
Jackson, one named Underwood and a man named 
Murphy, also Seba Barnes. This collection made by 
Bass was not done in one day, or in one year, but by 
long and careful study of those men, by passing on 
them, as competent for his service. Bass was not a 
petty thief, but a bold robber. His biggest opera- 
tions were not in Texas. He and his gang robbed a 
train in Nebraska and got $20,000 in gold. Bass and 
his men struck south, through the unsettled portion of 
"Western Kansas, and into the Panhandle of Texas, 
and continued down into Denton County, Texas. I 
don't suppose they saw a living white man in that 



146 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

thousand miles of travel. There was a thousand miles 
between them and any civil officer or detective, to 
ferret them out. The newspaper account of the rob- 
bery, the number that did it and the direction they 
started was all that could be found out. None of them 
were known where it happened. Bass and his party 
traveled by compass and came nearly straight to Den- 
ton County, Texas. 

By this time Major Jones had positive evidence of 
Bass' headquarters and his operations. The Major 
put some Rangers on the watch, not to positively in- 
vade the town of Denton, but to skirt around and find 
out what they could about Bass and his men. But to 
keep close under cover, regarding their identity as 
Rangers. 

Captain June Peak was put there as the main work- 
er on that job. I am not positive as to how it was 
accomplished, but Murphy had become known as one 
of the Bass gang and was approached in person, or 
by letter, to see if he could be handled, in the capture 
of the band. Major Jones was at Austin, conferring 
with the Governor, to see if he could offer Murphy 
immunity, if Murphy would work true in the matter. 

The Governor, 0. M. Roberts, agreed to free Mur- 
phy, if he would keep positive faith with Major Jones 
in capturing them. Murphy agreed to all the plans 
and corresponded with Major Jones as to where their 
next raid would be made, when they would all be to- 
gether. The robbers planned to go to Round Rock, 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 147 

Texas, as they had learned that one of the merchants 
at Round Rock had a big lot of gold in his safe. This 
merchant was P. G. Peters, who now lives in New 
Mexico, and the same old safe is right here now, in 
P. G. Peters' store. We have opened it many a time 
and always thought of Sam Bass. 

The Major stayed at headquarters in Austin waiting 
to hear from Murphy again. The band met and start- 
ed for Round Rock. When they got to Belton, in Bell 
County, which was about 50 miles from Round Rock, 
Murphy stepped into the postoffice and mailed a letter 
to Major Jones. This came near ending his life, as 
Bass had seen him enter the postoffice. When they 
went out of Belton, Bass put the matter straight to 
the band and they would have killed Murphy, only 
for the intervention of Jackson, who told them that 
they would have to kill him first. Murphy pleaded 
like a lawyer, stating that he had only stepped into 
the office to mail a letter to his people, as that might 
be the last one he would ever write. Although Mur- 
phy pleaded his own case he didn't have a ''fool for 
his client". That was all that saved him. Murphy 
had stated in that letter when they would reach Round 
Rock. The Major had called in such Rangers as he 
wanted and had them in readiness to proceed to Round 
Rock, and upon receipt of Murphy's letter took them 
to Round Rock on double quick. The Major ordered 
the Rangers to put their horses in a livery barn and 
stay there with them. He went to a hotel and didn't 



148 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

go about the Rangers much, but told them to look as 
near like * ' hay seeds ' ' as they could, to keep down sus- 
picion. A Mr. Grimes, who had been a Ranger, was 
deputy sheriff at Round Rock, and he and Maurice 
Moore, who was deputy sheriff in Travis County, had 
found out what was up, and thought they would get the 
prize, by capturing the Bass party first, if they came 
in. It was not long before Bass and his men showed 
up in Round Rock. There was Bass, Underwood, 
Murphy, Jackson and Seba Barnes, in the band. They 
tied their horses to a hitching rack back of a store 
and walked into the store and were casually surveying 
things, as ranchmen do, when Grimes and Moore en- 
tered the store and Grimes said to Bass " I see you have 
a six shooter. ' ' Bass replied, ' ' Yes sir, I have two of 
them", and jerked one out in an instant and shot 
Grimes dead. Mr. Moore came in behind Grimes, 
ready to shoot, but Bass was too quick for him, and 
shot him down, but Moore recovered from his wound, 
after a long and doubtful chance. Moore was just as 
game as Bass, or any other living man, but he made 
a mistake. The Rangers heard the firing, from the 
barn, and came like shot off a shovel, and got there 
just as the robbers were mounting their horses. The 
Rangers opened fire on them, and George Herald shot 
Seba Barnes through the head just as he was mounting 
his horse, and Sergeant "Dick" Ware shot Sam Bass, 
giving him a mortal wound, but Bass mounted his 
horse and fled, with Jackson and Underwood, and 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 149 

Murphy ran out with them a little distance, but dodged 
into a lane and came back into Round Rock. The 
Rangers got their horses as quickly as it could be done 
and pursued them, but they had reached the brush 
and thickets and they didn't get them that evening. 
Next morning early. Sergeant C. L. Neville took two 
or three men and was determined to track them up. He 
got the trail outside of the traveled roads within two 
miles, came upon Sam Bass. His horse was tied near 
him. Bass was lying under a tree and helpless. He 
spoke to Sergeant Neville first, saying ''I guess I am 
the man you are looking for; I am Sam Bass". Jack- 
son and Underwood had left him there, knowing he 
would die, but Bass told them to go. Sergeant Neville 
cared for Bass the best he could and got him back to 
Round Rock, where a doctor was gotten to attend him 
and he lived nearly through that night, making the 
second night after he was shot. Bass would tell noth- 
ing when his inquisitors would try to find out about 
his men or their doings. He said that "what he knew, 
would die with him". Bass gave Sergeant Neville 
his compass, being the one he traveled by from Nebras- 
ka to Texas. Sergeant Neville being a Company " D " 
man sent the compass to me as a present. George 
Herald, who killed Seba Barnes, was also a Company 
*'D" man. "Dick" Ware, who shot Bass, belonged 
to another Company, but Company "D" couldn't pro- 
duce a better man than Ware. Mr. Ware was after- 
wards U. S. Marshal for the Western District of Texas. 



150 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

Underwood and Jackson were never heard of any 
more in the state of Texas. Murphy in a manner 
surrendered to Major Jones, and their agreement was 
fulfilled to the letter and Murphy left for parts un- 
known to any one except Murphy. As to why Murphy 
did this is only a conjecture, and conjecture rests 
upon this basis; that his doom rested in a trembling 
balance. The civil officers of the state, assisted by 
the Rangers, were going to the bottom of all crime, 
reaching many cases, that involved the well being of 
society, and proving their strength to accomplish it. 
Jle knew it was only a matter of a short time with 
him. In another sense, the great secret monitor, called 
conscience, might have communed with his more noble 
attiributes, and told him of the awful wrong he was 
doing to his brothers and sisters of this world. We 
mentioned the Collins brothers as being connected with 
the Bass gang, in this article. The Collins brothers 
were cattle men and well to do. Joel Collins was 
detected, in matters connected with Sam Bass and state 
authorities informed of it. Joel Collins fled to Mon- 
tana and the deputy sheriff of Fort Worth, in Tar- 
rant county, pursued him. He found Collins in a 
hotel, and demanded his surrender, but Collins was 
not that kind, to do a subservient act, and the sheriff 
being ready to compel him, had to shoot him. Collins 
made a few steps, through a side door, and fell. The 
sheriff heard him strike the floor with a heavy thud 
and went to see if he was dead. Collins although 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 151 

dying, had made a quick calculation that he would 
come, and had a pistol ready, and shot him. The 
sheriff died first. The operations of the Bass gang 
were not known, at least, as the Bass gang, until they 
were located at Denton, Texas. They worked in dif- 
ferent states and many a hold-up and train robbery 
committed by them was charged to some one else. 
No confession was ever made by any of them and 
they all died fighting. What time Bass put in, from 
Indiana to Texas, or what states he was in, is un- 
known, but his right name was Bass. We met a gen- 
tleman in New Mexico, that taught Sam Bass in school, 
when he was a small boy. 

Since writing the above we quote from Charles A. 
Seringo's book, "A Cowboy Detective": "There is 
no doubt that Jim T. was a hard case and landed 
in Montana under an assumed name. Mrs. Julia Lan- 
dusky gave me many inside facts of Jim T. and his 
actions when he first landed in the little Rockies, as a 
slender young man. Now he is a middle aged large 
heavy man. Judging from the time he came to the 
little Rockies, and his description, as given by Mrs. 
Landusky, Mr. W. L. Dickinson is confident Jim T. 
is no other than "Dad" Jackson, of the noted Sam 
Bass gang who robbed the Union Pacific train, near 
Ogalla, Nebraska in the early 70 's. Most of this gang 
were killed or sent to the penitentiary for this hold- 
up. "Dad" Jackson being the only one that made 
his "getaway." Mr. Dickinson, who was then an 
operative in the agency worked on the case." 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 153 



Considering Results 

After the frontier of Texas was practically freed 
from Indian depredations, there was a turn of thought 
in the direction of building homes, and utilizing the 
vast domain gained by that long and sore struggle, 
which could not be claimed by the Frontier battalion, 
except in a sense of sustaining the ground work of 
greater men, that had left that field in the care of the 
sons of Texas. The 13th legislature, and succeeding 
legislatures took hold of the work like patriots and 
statesmen and maintained the Battalion as zealously 
as if they were in the field themselves. Their hearts 
were there, and willing hands were extended to us, 
who were in the midst of the work. I have often 
thought, that the bonds of friendship, so closely woven 
between the old Texans were knit in the struggles 
of war, where mutual help brought out the brotherhood 
of man, and the true love of home and family to an 
extent that few people realize. The lot of our mothers 
were cast with our fathers, and their sons and 
daughters, and taking the whole family, made a unit 
in the aggregate of Texas loyalty. Loyalty to Texas, 
was semi-loyalty to the new born Republic of the 
United States. The escutcheon on the breast of the 
American Eagle, was their ideal, in the realm of fu- 



154 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

ture hope. The ''Monroe Doctrine" although held 
subordinate to treaty stipulation, and latent, under 
the surface of diplomacy was the motor that moved 
the giant little machine, in Texas. A kind of wireless 
telegraphy was coming from our brothers in the East, 
to stand by our continental bulwarks. Although we 
were fighting our battles alone, there were ' ' many ears 
to the ground" in the states, to catch the glad sounds 
of our success. Enough of the heroism of our great 
leaders, have been embalmed in the records of Texas, 
and jointly preserved in our nation, and in that faith, 
a succeeding generation in Texas, have done the best 
they could to impart the justice of that faith to pos- 
terity. Texas having succeeded in gaining a govern- 
ment at first hands, gave them a spirit of independ- 
ence, as well as for independent government. When 
we were annexed to the United States, we expected 
protection to our people, which was only partially 
given, and in truth amounted to little. Then, the in- 
dependent spirit of Texas asserted itself, and brought 
together the old band, that once worshipped the single 
star. We shouldered the burden of protection with 
little complaint, but felt a keen injustice in it. But 
we were compelled to prevent wholesale murder of our 
people. If any explanation was ever due Texas, as 
to why w^e didn't get protection, the same is still due, 
and with interest. Right here, we will mention some 
splendid individual effort, by officers in the United 
States service, on the frontier of Texas, in which we 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 155 

delight to honor General McKenzie, and Lieutenant 
Bullis, both were fighters, and their daring deeds will 
live with Texans, along with the best service of Texas 
Rangers. 

We will not pick a quarrel with as big an ' ' hombre ' ' 
as "Uncle Sam" but his striped breeches did sag on 
us, when we needed help. But the heroic work of the 
United States Army, in subduing the Indians in 
other states and territories militates for their neglect 
in Texas. So we are willing to "shake" with U. S. 
Soldiers, in any cause or on any ground, within the 
borders of the United States. And we are also willing 
to forgive our enemies (the Indians) upon the ground 
of their belief that we were interlopers and claiming 
a domain that belonged to them. According to Web- 
ster's definition of "Domain," it would belong to 
some one, or some people, by right of occupancy. But, 
if it was public territory, under no established right 
of any people, who were recognized as a government 
by other stable governments, it might have been con- 
sidered as belonging to the Indians, by their occupying 
it. But, in the case of Texas it belonged to Mexico. 
The red man's claim was not good. I would feel little, 
if I could not be as magnanimous as Magoosh, the 
old war chief, on the Mescalero Reservation, who sends 
me such kind tokens of peace, one of which I copy, 
sent me by the sutler of that agency, Mr. J. W. Prude. 
"Magoosh says he would like to meet you, as a friend 
and brother once more before he dies; he met you 



156 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

once in battle and you was a brave man and he would 
like to take your hand, as a friend, since all the world 
is at peace, so far as he is concerned. And he really 
means it. I should like to witness the novel meeting 
of yourself and the old man, after all these years, 
when I am so familiar with the past history of both 
men. Yours truly, J. W. Prude." 

Since Magoosh has been under control of the U. S. 
Government he has proven to be loyal and we are 
willing to extend to him the "olive branch" in the 
hope of permanent peace. 

In the fall of 1882, active work in the line of pro- 
tection from Indian depredations had almost subsided, 
as they had learned that there was a "big mark" 
along the states border, that they must not cross. 
The builders of the Texas Pacific railroad were busy 
at work and had reached the Colorado river, about 
150 miles west of Fort Worth. This road ran on the 
32nd parallel, straight to El Paso, Texas. The dis- 
tance was about 700 miles, and passed across the 
northern border of the state, near where the "Pan- 
handle" strip of Texas, set in running north, and 
joining Kansas and Colorado. The Panhandle was 
not settled. Settlements had advanced to the north, 
in the state to afford some protection to the men 
building the railroad and when the road reached the 
Colorado river. Captain Marsh, of the Frontier Bat- 
talion was ordered there with his company, to protect 
the railroad builders. The road was pushed through 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 157 

to El Paso, and made a sort of dead line to marauding 
Indians coming from the north. Their territory was 
getting smaller, being confined mostly to the Pan- 
handle of Texas, with Kansas, New Mexico and Col- 
orado bordering in. New Mexico, however, was shel- 
tering some of the worst bands that infested Texas. 
Some of the tribes went to Old Mexico. The Yaqui 
Indians were on their native heath, in the west of Old 
Mexico, but have never bothered Texas. The two 
strongest tribes left in America, were Apaches, in 
Arizona, and the Cheyennes in Wyoming. Most of 
the weaker ones had sought refuge on reservations, 
in Arizona, New Mexico and other western states. 
The service of the Rangers was shifted to the border of 
Mexico. The thieving and marauding bands were 
coming back to Texas, sheltered by Mexico, but not 
by the Mexican Government, as Mexico was having her 
own serious troubles with them on her frontier. The 
United States troops, then had to deal with those pow- 
erful tribes in Arizona, and Wyoming, in which we 
lost General Custer, General Canby and many other 
brave men. The United States troops finally killed 
old Sitting Bull, the leader of the Cheyenne tribe, 
and old Geronimo, leader of the Apaches was cap- 
tured and kept under surveillance, until he died about 
two years ago. Thus we see the approaching end of 
Cooper's "Noble Red Man." After the several tribes 
had been brought in, on reservations, the policy of 
the Indian management was to educate the Indian 



158 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

children, and they put many of them in schools far 
removed from their tribes. We think this was a mis- 
take, in so far as removing them from their parents 
to educate them. It was breaking up the natural ties 
of family and home, and causing sorrow that their 
new condition was not ready for. The child pined 
for its mother and father, and family and the parents 
loved their children as dearly as the most civilized 
white people. The children's most absorbing thought 
was to return to their ties of blood and kindred, which 
they did after a mechanical training which amounted 
to nothing more. They went back to the blanket, in 
the tepee, to enjoy God's gift of love, in huraan af- 
fection. They could not hope to reach the realm of 
white society, at a cost of all that is dear to human 
beings. Whereas, if they had been schooled on their 
reservations, where the parents could have been in 
touch and interest with the movement, the parents 
would have absorbed a great part of the education 
themselves. Our own people were unanimous in a 
hope to civilize them, but that matter was turned over 
to Eastern people, whose actual knowledge of the In- 
dian was gained by dime novel sentiment. It was not 
an actual knowledge. A board of United States Army 
officers would have been more competent to deal with 
the matter from positive knowledge and contact with 
Indian character, but the military being subordinate 
to civil authority disqualified them. Placing the In- 
dians on reservations, simply to draw rations and an- 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 159 

nuities, made indigent sluggards of them, and they 
took it as a sort of peace offering, to be good. The 
strong arm of the government was a little too passive, 
in not teaching them to earn a living. However, we 
recall the action of Lieutenant Stotler, who was Indian 
agent on the Mescalero reservation, in Otero County, 
New Mexico. Whether this action was upon his own in- 
itiative, or advised by the management, I do not know. 
He first rounded them up, and had their long hair 
cut, put hats on them, gave them wagons and teams, 
and farming implements, helped them to pick out 
good spots of land that could be irrigated, and had 
a farmer to show them how to sow wheat, plant corn, 
or any crops they wished to raise. In the fall fol- 
lowing their first effort, you could see "Mr. Injun" 
driving his team around through the country with 
grain to sell. Lieutenant Stotler conceived the idea 
of putting them up a saw mill, as they have plenty of 
fine timber on their reservations, and the lumber 
could be used by the govevrnment in building and re- 
pairing buildings on the agency. The Indians got pay 
for this work; just imagine a ''buck Indian" cutting 
and hauling saw logs and working around the mill. 
Axle grease was substituted for his war paint, and his 
hatchet had grown to be a chopping axe. They have 
some cattle, horses, and sheep, and they all use one 
brand for their stock which is a bow and arrow sym- 
bolizing their primitive means of killing game. They 
still have game on their reservation. The White 



160 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

Mountain (Sierra Blanco) is on their reservation, 
and the distance around its base is about 50 miles, 
and well covered with timber, up to timber line. The 
New York World almanac gives the altitude of the 
"White Mountain 14,145 feet above sea level, being 
about 100 feet higher than Pike's Peak. The citizens 
adjacent to the reservation get along nicely with the 
Indians. We received a letter a few days ago from 
their old war chief in which he stated that he wished 
to. see us, and shake our hands cordially, adding that 
he was once wild and mean, but is so no more. We 
answered him, that we would like to see him and 
"shake" before we passed to the "happy hunting 
ground. ' ' 

In rounding up our service, through a period of 
nearly seven years, we lost only one man killed in 
action. Several of our men had their hats and clothes 
punctured with bullets, and some horses killed and 
wounded. Our manner of fighting was quick work, 
at close range ; only a few minutes was decisive. The 
enemy had no time to look for advantage, and once 
they broke their line for retreat, they could never 
rally under constant fire. We suffered most in the 
Deer Creek fight, which is mentioned in one of the 
first chapters of this writing, but that fight just pre- 
ceded our service in the Frontier Battalion. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 161 



Fence Cutters 

After we had helped to make investments safe in 
Texas we found that the man with capital was watch- 
ing our progress, and didn 't fail to ' ' cinch ' ' what we 
had fought for, in buying and leasing great bodies 
of land, to run cattle on. This land was fenced with 
barbed wire. Many men on the frontier, who thought 
they were helping to conserve a public interest, in 
the public domain of Texas, began to see that capital 
had shut out all small interests, and the door of op- 
portunity was closed. It was not generally Texas cap- 
ital that did this, but the. state was lax in not pro- 
tecting its own sovereignty. Nearly all frontiersmen 
were poor in purse, having been depleted by a series 
of robbery by Indians and outlaws. The frontiers- 
men resented fencing them out, but they did it in a 
way that made criminals of them, under the law. 
They commenced to cut those fences, regardless of law, 
but were not a match to the situation. Consequently, 
they were "down and out." They had to hunt new 
territory to make a start. Texas was liberal to capital, 
but all her people didn't share her liberality, in a 
measure that they had earned. We do not mean to 
controvert a former statement in this writing, that 
Texas was liberal in giving people homes, but a home 



162 Rangers and Sovereignty 

on the frontier, that didn't combine stock raising was 
a poor home. Her endowment of public land, to 
schools and universities, also her asylums and other 
institutions, was simply grand. But the people on the 
frontier were very remote from those blessings, not- 
withstanding they occupied the ground included in 
those magnanimous donations. They all felt a pride 
in this, but, to give capital, which was cold-blooded 
advantage against them, the rope and noose to stran- 
gle them with, was very apparent to even a frontiers- 
man. The little neglected citizenship on the frontier 
was too insignificant to be heard in legislation, and 
in consequence they had to take what followed ; equal 
opportunity was the boon they asked. Did they get 
it? No, they got epithets piled high on them, as law 
breakers, and undesirable citizens, and had to subside, 
as felons. It was not only the fence cutters, but all 
the small stock owners, that received the cold warning 
to ''keep off the grass." Texas could make no dis- 
tinction in the rights of her citizens, by laAv, and 
failed to see that natural rights were invoh^ed. Con- 
sequently, men from other states were watching our 
fight, with about as much interest in it, as they would 
have in a "Kilkenny cat fight" until our affairs 
were adjusted to warrant investment. "Sam" Hous- 
ton, and his compatriots, left a legacy in land to Texas, 
that made her as rich as Croesus, but could not live 
long enough to conserve it. However, the Republic 
of Texas began right, in granting what they called 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 163 

a headright, giving to the head of a family a certain 
amount of land, as a recognition of their services in 
fighting for it. In 1874, the land on the Texas frontier 
covered about the same area, that well-settled portion 
of the State covered, if not more, including the Pan- 
handle strip, and from San Antonio to the Rio Grande, 
and up and down that river, for nearly a thousand 
miles. That frontier territory has proven that it was 
worth as much to Texas as her cotton farms.. It has 
stocked nearly every state, west of the Mississippi 
River to California, with cattle. It built Texas a 
capitol building that cost six million dollars. It sub- 
sidized the M. K. & T. railroad, in a vast donation, 
also other railroads. It built up other Texas institu- 
tions, to perfect grandeur, and Texas has reserved 
land enough for schools, to give her the largest school 
fund of any state in the Union, based upon popula- 
tion, of scholastic age. But, the poor fellows that made 
the land available only got a little mock turtle soup. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 165 



Horrel War 



We denominate this a "war" because the Horreis 
were the principal actors in what was called the Lin- 
coln County War in New Mexico. 

In 1867, when Texas was trying to rebuild her torn- 
up government under a guard of United States 
soldiers, Edmund J. Davis was elected governor of 
Texas. Governor Davis commanded a regiment in the 
Union army, although a Texan, and his regiment was 
composed of Texans. While reconstruction was going 
on, Governor Davis put out a State Police to keep 
down disorders until civil government could be es- 
tablished. He appointed Capt. Tom. Williams as cap- 
tain of police. Captain Williams served with Gov- 
ernor Davis in the Union Army. 

The Horreis lived in Lampasas county, Texas, there 
being three or four brothers of them, and all being 
old settlers there they had many friends. I do not 
believe they had "smelled much blood" in real con- 
flict — not at least to the extent which makes opposing 
forces friends in mutual admiration of courage. They 
were very zealous in keeping up strife over the "dead 
war" issues and caused much trouble in Lampasas 
county. Captain Williams was dispatched to Lam- 
pasas to quell the disturbances. The Horreis were 



166 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

defiant and considered Captain Williams an intruder 
into their dominion and openly murdered him. This 
put the United States soldiers after them. 

They dodged from place to place until it got too 
warm for them, when they left for New Mexico. They 
came to where the city of Roswell is now located, and 
there being no law in the territory then, except mil- 
itary, and that ' ' only in spots, ' ' they had a clear field 
to work in. 

In 1868 some big cattle ranches were being estab- 
lished in the country, and in the latter part of that 
year John Cliisum started his big ranch on South 
Spring river, four miles south of Roswell. Soon after 
that, "Billy the Kid" started a little war of his own 
up in Lincoln County; and the details of that being 
too tedious to write, it need only be said that murder 
and robbery were its leading features. Mr. Chisum 
found that ' ' fighting men ' ' were in demand to protect 
his cattle; and the Kid bunch and the Horrels being 
the strongest and they together having absorbed about 
all the fighting characters in the country, he had to 
use some fine diplomacy in securing one or the other, 
or both, to help him out. I have been told that fighting 
wages didn't satisfy them and that they appropriated 
Mr. Chisum 's cattle very freely to make up the de- 
ficit. 

The Horrels were not common thieves, but neces- 
sity had driven them to do things of a lawless char- 
acter that made outlaws of them. They became very 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 167 

desperate men. They killed several Mexican citizens 
in Lincoln County. 

After their several years stay in New Mexico, De- 
mocracy had been restored to voting power in Texas 
and Richard Coke was elected governor ; and the Hor- 
rels made the mistake of going back to Lampasas 
County, Texas. A Democratic administration had to 
deal out justice to them for the murder of Captain 
Williams and some other men. In the meantime, the 
Ranger force had been put into the field by Governor 
Coke and political sympathy didn't figure with them. 
The civil officers were still unable to cope with the 
situation there and the Rangers were called on for 
help. Major Jones went in person and took my old 
duty sergeant N. 0. Reynolds, with him, in command 
of the squad. I loved Major Jones, but he played an 
Irish trick on me when he took Reynolds from me. 
But I was compensated later on when the Major se- 
cured a Captain's commission for Reynolds. 

The Horrels were known to be in Lampasas County, 
but they were kept posted as to the movements of the 
Rangers. On the other hand, the good citizens were 
trying just as hard to locate them for the Rangers. 
In a neighborhood some eight or ten miles south of 
the town of Lampasas the people got positive informa- 
tion that the Horrels were fifteen or twenty miles 
southeast of the town, on the Lampasas River. Now, 
to get this information to Llajor Jones might appear 
to be a small matter, but the Horrels had spies on 



168 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

every road leading in their direction. There was a 
young fellow from the east, the veriest tenderfoot, vis- 
iting in that neighborhood. He told them that he 
would deliver that message to Major Jones. They 
saw that he had the backbone to try it and they let 
him go with it. 

That young man was J. M. Hawkins, who is now 
postmaster in Alamogorda, New Mexico. 

Sure enough, their spies rounded him up on the 
road; but I imagine Hawkins tried to appear greener 
than he really was, playing the "baby act" success- 
fully, and went on his way rejoicing. He delivered 
the message to Major Jones. This located the Hor- 
rels and no time was lost in starting the Rangers 
after them. It was on a rainy evening and the Horrels 
had sought shelter in a vacant house near the river. 
Some of the most bitter enemies of the Horrels wanted 
to go with Sergeant Reynolds and assist in capturing 
them, but Reynold 's declined their help except to take 
one man with him to show him the house they were 
in. When he got near this house he told his man to 
go back as he needed no further assistance. Reynolds 
advanced cautiously, in the night, and encountered no 
guard or watchman in his approach. The Horrels 
were all asleep in the house. Reynolds placed his 
men around the house with orders not to shoot until 
lie ordered them to do so. He opened the front door 
and walked into the house alone. He lighted a match 
and saw the situation in the front room and had to 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 169 

act at a flash, as Tom Horrel was sleeping in that 
room with his rifle on the bed with him. He saw 
Reynolds by the light of the match, and Reynolds saw 
his gun, both men grabbed the gun at the same time. 
The Horrels were big, powerful men, while Reynolds 
was no less powerful, although he didn't look it. In 
the scuffle over the gun, the weapon was discharged. 
The men in front pushed into the house and in that 
crucial moment Reynolds told them not to shoot — that 
the discharge of the gun was an accident. Reynolds 
wrenched the gun out of Horrel's hands and told him 
they were the Rangers. The men in the other room 
had made no demonstrations so far, knowing that if 
they ran out they would meet bullets. Reynolds 
talked Tom Horrell into calmness and told him to go 
into the other rooms and tell his men to come out and 
surrender and he would see that they were not mobbed. 
Horrel had struck the one man in his life that was the 
finest of steel, and he appeared to like Reynolds from 
that moment. Tom went in and told them and vouched 
for it himself that they would not be mobbed. They 
all came out and surrendered to the Rangers. They 
were taken up to the town of Lampasas and no con- 
siderable crowd of men were allowed to come near 
them. Major Jones, conferring with the civil author- 
ities, knew it would not do to put them in the Lam- 
pasas jail, and they were sent to a jail some 100 miles 
north of there, thinking they would escape mob vio- 
lence. When Reynolds parted with them at the 



170 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

jail the Horrels shed tears and told him they never 
expected to see him again. 

The Rangers were kept at Lampasas awhile, and as 
long as they were there the Horrels were pretty safe, 
notwithstanding they were some distance away. 

As soon, however, as they were taken from Lampasas 
a mob was organized which was sufficiently strong 
to go to the jail v/here the Horrels were incarcerated. 
They overpowered the sheriff, entered the jail and shot 
the Horrels to death. 

The ugly crime was never righted by law. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 171 



(EXTRACT) 
(The Austin, Texas, Daily Slatesman. Tuesday, October 5th, 1897) 

The Old Texas Rangers. 



Their First Annual Reunion Held Here Yes- 
terday a Most Happy One. 



VETERAN INDIAN FIGHTERS 
PRESENT. 



The Abundance of Good Cheer at Zoo Park and Timely 

Address — Music by the Blind Pupils — 

Next Meeting at Dallas. 

O 

The Texas Ranger Association met in this city yes- 
terday in their first annual reunion and were called 
to order in Board of Trade hall by President Joe G. 
Booth. 

Secretary Will Lambert called the roll and eighty 
of the old vets responded, and some fifteen or twenty 
who were not in the hall swelled the actual attend- 
ance to about 100, a much larger number than was 
expected, owing to the yellow fever scare and the wild 
and wooly quarantines. 

Mayor Hancock was present, and in a neat and ap- 



172 Rangers and Sovereignty 

propriate speech welcomed the old rangers and ex- 
tended to them the freedom of the city. 

On motion of Secretary Lambert the following me- 
morial committee was appointed to draw up suitable 
resolutions on the death of members who have passed 
away since the organization in June last: Col. Will 
Lambert, M. M. Kinney and L. L. McGehee. 

On motion the following committee was appointed 
on constitution and by-laws: Capt. M. M. Kinney, 
W. G. Lee and Cass Calahan. 

The committee retired and reported back the con- 
stitution and by-laws drawn up some time back, with- 
out change, and they were adopted. 

Mrs. D. W. Roberts, wife of Capt. D. W. Roberts, 
was present and invited to a seat on the stand, where 
President Booth formally introduced her to the con- 
vention. 

Mrs. Roberts is a lady of culture and refinement, 
and for three years she was in camp with Capt. Rob- 
erts and his company on the extreme frontier suffer- 
ing the hardships of a frontier life and braving the 
dangers of Indian warfare. Her womanly graces and 
indomitable courage was the admiration of the en- 
tire force of Rangers, and Company D, commanded 
by her husband, idolized her. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 173 



INTERESTING LETTERS 

The following letter from Capt. Roberts, who now 
resides at Nogal, New Mexico, was read: 

To My Old Comrades of Company D, Frontier Bat- 
talion ^ Texas Bangers: 

Words fail to express my regret and intense dis- 
appointment at not being able to be with you at this, 
our first reunion. 

Although I am denied the great privilege of seeing 
you, face to face, and grasping your hands, be as- 
sured, my beloved comrades, that I am with you in 
spirit, and that my heart is in this noble work — that 
of perpetuating the name and fame of the Texas 
Rangers, not only to keep it fresh in our memories, 
but that our posterity may fully know and appreciate 
the service rendered by our gallant men to the state, 
whereby we helped to lay the foundation of a civiliza- 
tion which they will enjoy, but may fail to recognize. 

Circumstances have separated us from each other. 
I have drifted from my loved old state ; but time and 
space cannot efface from my memory or eradicate 
from my affection those comrades with whom I have 
stood side by side, in sunshine and in shade, in con- 
flict and in times of quiet repose, during so many of 
the best years of our lives. 



174 Rangers and Sovereignty 

Some reminiscences of a Ranger camp are among 
the most pleasant remembrances of my life. How viv- 
idly I recall the scenes around the campfire, and the 
stirring incidents that go to make up camp life. For 
instance : 

The report that there were fifteen Indians seen on 
the divide between Menard and Kimble counties. The 
excitement was intense and the men detailed on that 
scout were highly elated, each expecting to return 
bearing trophies fastened to his belt. Alas! After 
hours of hard riding they came in with the sad news 
that they had trailed a herd of mustangs. Such dis- 
appointments were very common. 

Doubtless you will readily recall our first engage- 
ment with the Indians when we were camped below 
Menardville. How eager you were to attack them, 
and it was with great difficulty you were restrained 
until the proper time to fire. Some of us had a close 
call; a bullet passed through Jim Hawkin's hat, my 
horse wounded in the shoulder ; some horses killed ; but, 
withal, we came out without a scratch. This defeat 
seem to satisfy the Indians, for they sought pastures 
new, and never returned to that part of the country, 
having left behind them several of their dead. 

One of the Indian chiefs who was in command in a 
subsequent fight in which we captured the Mexican 
boy, is now living on the Mescalero Indian Reservation, 
within twenty-five miles of my home. His name is 
Magoosh. We have buried the hatchet, but are not 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 175 

neighborly, and in passing through the reservation I 
always keep a sharp lookout for Magoosh. 

Were we together we could recall incident after in- 
cident, and live, as it were, the old Ranger life over 
again. It is with mingled feelings of pride and pleas- 
ure that I recall the implicit confidence I had in the 
steadfast courage of each of my men, knowing, as I did, 
that where I led they would surely follow. 

While you are rejoicing in this reunion it is sad to 
note the missing faces — those we never hope to see 
again ; but you will not forget to honor their memory. 
One among these, much beloved by us all, was Adjutant 
General John B. Jones, ' ' our major, ' ' who was with us 
from the beginning and continued in the service until 
called from earth by the dread destroyer, death, A 
grand man ! A patriotic soldier ! A daring and chiv- 
alrous officer! A generous and sympathetic friend! 
All the attributes of a noble and true manhood were 
combined in Gen. John B. Jones. 

While I have not been permitted to shake hands 
with you at this reunion I still look forward to the 
happy time when I shall be in the midst of the merry- 
making. Dear comrades, we are Rangers no more ex- 
cept in spirit, but in our various callings let our in- 
fluence be felt for truth, patriotism and good citizen- 
ship, exhibiting the same enthusiasm and zeal that 
we have ever shown as soldiers. Let our purpose be to 
act well our part on the stage of life, so that when the 
last roll is called, and we receive our final furlough 



176 Rangers axd So\t:reigxty 

we may leave a good record to posterity and an un- 
tarnished name to the Texas Rangers. 
Yours truly, 

D. W. Roberts. 

The following letter from Gen. W. H. King was also 
read: 

Sulphur Springs. Texas, Oct. 1, 1897. 
Joe G. Booth, Esq.. 

Austin, Texas. 

^ly dear sir: It is with regret that I acknowledge 
my inability to be present at the "reunion of the old 
Rangers" in Austin on the 4th inst., a courteous in- 
vitation to which, from your hands, has just reached 
me by telegram. My official and personal connection 
and intercourse with the rangers for nearly ten years 
served to enlighten me remarkably as to the wonderful 
value of this service to Texas, and as to the high char- 
acter and unusual combination of good qualities 
found in the gallant men who compose this organiza- 
tion. They have been for many years the safest and 
surest, and in some cases the only supporters of law 
and order to be found in some sections of our widely 
extended borders — the forerunners of civilization, the 
harbingers of peace and safety to life and property. 
No man can measure the real value of the services 
rendered this state by the splendid, gallant and pa- 
triotic body of men known as ' ' Texas Rangers, ' ' their 
history and efforts covering a period of more than 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 177 

sixty years, going back into the trying times when 
Texas stood alone and faced her ^lexican foes from 
the Rio Grande and her savage ones inside and out; 
coming down to our own day and time with a record 
for energy, ability, untiring activity, high courage, 
devotion to duty — always on the side of law and order, 
and individually and collectively of exceptionally up- 
right and honorable character and conduct. I am 
proud of my four j^ears' service as a Confederate 
soldier, and I am equally proud of my connection with 
the Texas Rangers. I take off my hat to them, and 
feel highly honored in having been with them so long, 
and so pleasantly, and in possessing their esteem, as 
they do mine. 

Again regretting that adverse circumstances forbid 
my attendance on your coming reunion, and wishing 
you all a joyous and profitable meeting, and many 
happy returns, and for each of you personally my 
warmest regards, I am, sincerely yours, 

W. H. King. 

A motion was made and carried that the letters be 
spread on the minutes of the association and that the 
Austi7i Statesman, San Antonio Express, Galveston 
News, Houston Post and Dallas News be requested to 
publish the same. 



Eangbes and Sovereignty. 179 



Adios Rangers 



In the fall of 1882, we found ourselves becoming 
inactive, as our primary work abated, in a sense that 
was gratifying to our past effort, in the frontier ser- 
vice. The Indian question had principally been set- 
tled in Texas, and the burden rested in other states 
and territories. The Ranger force was being reduced 
by the state, and it appeared to us that we were only 
looking after "odds and ends." Consequently I ten- 
dered my resignation as captain of Company "D" 
Frontier Battalion to our Adjutant General, W. H. 
King. Adjutant General King feeling very friendly 
to me, in answer, asked me to take command of a com- 
pany of Rangers, at Fort Davis, which would have 
been following our common enemy, to the border of 
Mexico. But, Company ''D" was our idol, and the 
health of my wife demanded my most serious attention. 
General King accepted my resignation. General King 
was a tried and true soldier, and a man of rare ability. 
We parted from him reluctantly, as we did from our 
old company ; and to the survivors of my old company, 
we offer a farewell to last to the shores of eternity. 

Since my "goodbye" to the Rangers I will try +o 
tell something about the great state that some of them 
still live in. 



180 Rangers and Sovereignty 

Texas is more diversified, in climate and soils than 
probably any other State in the Union of States. 
Mainly on account of her various altitudes, from the 
Gulf, to a point opposite the Rocky Mountains in 
Colorado. 

The physical geography of the state connects a 
western arid belt with a semi-humid belt, lying or be- 
ing below the 32nd parallel and all north of that is 
arid land. The Texas Pacific Railroad runs east and 
west, on the 32nd parallel. Those zones run north and 
south, and connect near the middle of the state, their 
blending is almost as fine as the colors of the rainbow. 

We vnll draw an imaginary line north and south 
from Big Springs on the Texas Pacific Railroad run- 
ning south, say 30 miles west of Austin, and crossing 
the Guadalupe River just below Seguin, and running 
straight to Goliad, on the San Antonio River, thence 
by Beeville and to Corpus Christi. This line crosses 
all the rivers mentioned diagonally. 

We will cross-section the eastern division, by giving 
the character of land, and its products, only giving 
staple products as a basis. 

We will draw a line from Big Springs south to Fort 
Mason, in Mason County, a distance of nearly two 
hundred miles, thence east via Lampasas Springs to 
Waco, on the Brazos River, thence east by Fairfield 
to Pine Bluff, on the Trinity River. Thence north to 
the thirty-second parallel east of Dallas. We will 
have to take in six or seven counties lying north of 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 181 

Dallas and Fort Worth, as the best wheat, corn and 
oats counties in the State. The block we have lined 
in produces fine cotton, corn, wheat, and oats. Com- 
mencing again at Pine Bluff, on the Trinity River, 
and running east to the Sabine River, joining Louisi- 
ana, and north to the Indian Territory, we have a 
timbered section, which give us lumber in the west. 
This section is generally denominated Eastern Texas. 

We will now take another block from the town of 
Mason south to Seguin on the Guadalupe river, thence 
east to the city of Houston and still east to Orange 
on the Sabine River, with slight variance in crop 
production, only a gain in cotton, with oat crop lighter 
on account of rust in the oats. 

Now we come to the coast block, from Corpus 
Christi, east to Port Arthur, taking in all the zigzags 
of peninsulas, bays and inlets on the Texas coasts, 
embracing the cities of Galveston, Houston, and 
smaller coast towns. 

We will now take up five counties near the middle 
of the coast block, namely, Colorado, Wharton, Mata- 
gorda, Fort Bend, and Harris, as producers of rice, 
sugar, corn, cotton, and nearly all crops desired. This 
block of counties embrace the famous "Old Caney" 
lands, which are noted for sugar cane, (ribbon cane) 
and you have to almost climb the cotton stalks to pick 
the cotton; and the truth is big enough without ex- 
aggeration. Taking east and west of this block the 
land is generally good, and produces finely. 



182 Rangers and Sovereignty 

We are not boosting for Texas, and more, we do not 
believe in that method of deception, that lures people 
to the ''promised land" to find themselves victims 
of graft. Texas has its "draw-backs" just the same 
as any other state, which are drouths, and late frosts 
in the spring, with mosquitos in the coast country, 
quite enough to be interesting. 

We now take up the "Western Hemisphere," al- 
lowing Texas to be a little world. 

In the arid belt lying west of what we have at- 
tempted to describe, lies the great cattle ranges of the 
state, and from the coast to her northern boundary. 
The indigeneous grasses of western Texas are many, 
and very nutritious, having fattening qualities of blue 
grass or timothy, but they have to struggle for life, 
against weeds, where the ranges are eaten out by 
overstocking. Big pastures having been fenced in by 
private enterprise, has preserved the grass to some 
extent, as individuals look after their interests, in not 
overstocking. Within the last decade, irrigation has 
attracted the people, and caused them to see its great 
value, about one-third of this vast area is farming land, 
provided it can be reached with water. Several self- 
flowing canals and ditches have been made, and many 
pumping plants installed, in this arid region. Thoy 
lie west of the Norther (north wind) bolt> and are 
almost immune from freezes, which fact, makes that 
section ideal for farming, taking climate as a factor. 

Now we will "talk about our neighbors." Many 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 183 

Texans don't know, that one of the hardest fought 
battles that ever occurred on Texas soil, was fought 
by a few ragged Missourians, under command of Col. 
Donophin, in 1846. This occurred right where the city 
of El Paso is now situated. This was on his march 
to Mexico to join Gen. Scott. You will find the par- 
ticulars of this in Col. Ralph Emerson Twitchel's 
history of the Spanish and American occupation of 
New Mexico. We think that Texas historians have 
taken too much for granted, that this piece of history 
is embraced in the Mexican war history. It was fought 
on Texas soil, by Missourians, not yet under the im- 
mediate command of General Scott. We all know that 
Colonel Donophin was fighting the northern division 
of the Mexican army, but Texas was more directly 
interested in this fight. Colonel Donophin was a 
thousand miles from any base of supplies. 

The great statesman, Thomas H. Benton of Mis- 
souri, had his "ear to the ground" listening for Don- 
ophin, but he had gone too far from him, to get any 
tidings. The storms and prairie fires had obliterated 
Donophin 's trail across the great plains, and when 
this fight occurred, he had no "carrier dove" to tell 
where he was. He pulled down the bars of northern 
Mexico, and marching in on a dirt road, strewn with 
cactus, far out into the interior of Mexico where he 
met General Scott. His men were almost in a nude 
condition, but they were as gay as colts, and each one 
of them felt that he was as big a man as Gen. Scott, 



184 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

on a basis of American pride. Hence, the saying that 
you have to show a Missourian, that he can't do any- 
thing. 

The early settlers of Texas, almost perfectly typify, 
early colonial life in Virginia, varying in, or under 
the auspices of which the undertaking was made. The 
early colonial life in Virginia were under the ban of 
imperial surveillance, and all their first charters of 
institutions, that appeared too liberal, to the King 
of Great Britain, were revoked, putting them back 
under the yoke of truckling subjects. The analogy 
of, or between the settling of the two great states, 
relate more to the character of the people. In fact 
many of the first settlers of Texas, were the same 
people, or descended straight from them. Their in- 
dependence and hospitality were an "Old Virginia" 
product. Linking them back through all the states, 
to Virginia, the first Texans simply came on the crest 
of the first w^ave w^est. Kentucky furnished a big 
quota, with their old "brindle" rifles, and many old 
Texans are yet adepts in handling a corkscrew. I 
hope their hoary old heads may think kindly of this 
mention of them. We ask the readers of this small 
effort, to have patience with a novice, and if we have 
failed to interest you it will be a failure of truth, as we 
saw it, by bitter experience, and pleasure mixed. 



Rangers and Sovereignty. 185 



Old Spanish Fort 

In the northern portion of Texas, are the plain ev- 
idences of prehistoric settlement. About 25 miles 
below Ft. McKavett, which is situated at the head 
springs of the San Saba River, stands an old fort, 
called the Old Spanish Fort. There is no history of it, 
as to who built it, or when it was built. It was well 
constructed for defense, being built immediately on 
the bank of the San Saba River, and on the east bank, 
having a large body of water on the west side, prob- 
ably a mile long, and 75 to 100 yards wide, with con- 
siderable depth. There was no approach to the Fort, 
under the banks of the river. To the east, there was 
an open space of land, covering probably a half 
mile, and perfectly level. 

They had some kind of cannon, and two diamonds, 
well built, at each end of the Fort wall, upon which 
their pieces were mounted. Curiosity led some people 
to dig down at those diamonds, where they found 
hundreds of round iron balls, something like the size 
of an orange, that they had used in the field pieces. 
The wall of the Fort was about 12 feet high, and 
the inner buildings were joined to the main wall and 
facing in from it. The Fort would accommodate 200 
people. It was all built of stone. 



186 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

The people that occupied the Fort, was an agri- 
cultural people, as the plain marks of ditches were 
to be seen, within a half mile of the Fort, that they 
used for irrigating. We say they were Spaniards, 
but other evidence doesn't prove it. When the Span- 
iards occupied Santa Fe, New Mexico, they found 
seven old towns, extending south, from Santa Fe, in 
the direction of Texas, and the history of the people 
that built them was never learned, and is not known 
to-day. The structure of the old forts in New Mexico, 
are almost exactly the same as that in Texas. The 
people of Texas were accustomed to say, and think, 
that the northwestern portion of Texas was a new 
country, but the facts stand out, that it was the oldest 
settled part of North America. The fact of their having 
cannon, doesn't prove them Spaniards. There were 
great sea pirates, who superseded General Lafitte, 
and by centuries. They could have had this island 
home, which was secluded from all Nations. But, 
our imagination has no right to denominate them pi- 
rates. If it was our task to find out who they were, 
we would search Ridpath's History of the World, and 
look for missing people of all Nations, when, and how 
they disappeared. There are legends telling of those 
people, but not a word in authentic history. 



Rangers and Soveeeignty. 187 



Old San Antonio Road 

The old San Antonio Road is, or was, the first land- 
mark in Texas and is older than Texas. It was made 
by the Spaniards from Nacogdoches, on the Sabine 
River, to the old city of San Antonio. It crossed the 
Colorado River at Bastrop. Bastrop was a place of 
rest for the old Spanish traders crossing their do- 
minion from Mexico to Louisiana. I think the old 
road was called Gochirs trace by the first white men 
that came to that new country. That old road was 
latitude, longitude, meridian and compass to travelers, 
so far as geographical reckonings were concerned. The 
noted sea pirate, General Lafitte, on his island, now 
called Galveston, made his reckonings by land in case 
of invasion from the water, by that old road. It 
marked the northern settlements of the Spaniards 
and made a safe retreat to ''no-man's land." No 
American surveyor's chain had ever played "stick- 
stuck" in that vast country. 

We think Texas should embalm that old road in 
her history. 

The Daughters of the American Revolution have 
marked the Santa Fe Trail from Independence, ]\Iis- 
souri, to Santa Fe, New Mexico, by erecting beautiful 
monuments of stone along the ancient trail that led 



188 Rangers and Sovereignty. 

to western civilization. We read the following in- 
scription on one of those monuments: ''By the 
Daughters of the American Revolution, Marking the 
Old Santa Fe Trail." 



Eangers and Sovereignty. 189 



A New Texas 



Since niy absence from the State, of about thirty 
years, and returning to San Antonio about a month 
ago, I find conditions quite changed. In the days, 
when Adams & Weeks ran a mule team train from 
San Antonio to all Western points, with supplies 
for Government Posts, requiring about two months' 
time to get to Fort Bliss, where El Paso now is, via 
the head of Devils River, Howards- Well, old Fort 
Lancaster and Fort Davis. 

I came in this trip, on the Southern Pacific Railway 
from El Paso, and crossed the Pecos on a bridge span- 
ning that ' ' Gulf, ' ' perhaps the most wonderful struc- 
ture of its kind in the United States. 

I thought of Adams & Weeks, and wondered if this 
railroad company had consulted them as to "right of 
way. ' ' 

"Old timers" will "hark back" with me, when 
Howard & Tivey of San Antonio had the contract to 
survey the German colony land, for the Fredericks- 
burg colony, and with pleasure we note the splendid 
achievement of their effort, in building from a wil- 
derness to to the most prosperous people in Texas. 
Last month, they got railroad connection with San 
Antonio. 



190 Rangers and Sovereignty 

Railroads gave us Interstate Commerce, and when 
the Panama Canal is finished we will share interna- 
tional commerce with Latin nations, without crossing 
the continent to get to it. Look out for a port and 
harbor at the mouth of the Rio Grande, and San An- 
tonio is nearly in the right place. 



V 



